Steve Morris

There can't have been many England fans watching Argentina getting dismantled by the wonderful German side of World Cup 2010 thinking "I admire them, but I wouldn't want anything they've got". But there was certainly one very high profile former England player who expressed precisely those sentiments. Gary Lineker probably wanted to be unqualified in his praise, but sensing the mood of a nation still in the fug of a mauling by Jogi Low's team he mumbled "It's not hard to not envy the Germans". You could read it like this: "We don't really like Germany, but boy they are really good".

Will we ever see people purring about the delights of German football in the way they get themselves in such a lather about Brazil and Argentina? Not likely. It suits many observers to retreat into stereotyping that stumbles clumsily into jingoism and on occasion, casual racism of the laziest kind (Africans don't understand defending, but y'know they can be very skilful). When the pain of having an average at best national side just won't go away then what else is there to make them feel better but to patronise everyone else?

If a nation's football team can say something about how that nation feels about itself then this country must really be in the doldrums. And let's face it- oh the irony - it's those English players who are cold, uninspiring & robotic. German players are excelling at a brand of modern football more technically skilful than Argentina and Brazil, better in defence than Italy (when they were good!), and more enterprising than Holland and Uruguay. They deserve full and unreserved credit. Should they fail to win the tournament they will have still set a standard that others will have to rise to - and it's a standard that England can only imagine in their wildest dreams.

I remember when it started.

It was a damp, chilly April lunchtime in North London two years ago. A struggling Royals side is being toyed with by an Arsenal team bristling with stars such as Van Persie, Walcott and Adebayor. Things don't look good as the home side capitalise on an error by Ibrahima Sonko and Adebayor finishes with a cool, clinical touch. This could be bad. We've not created very much, and I'm sat a stone's throw from the suffering Reading fans, but perversely I'm in amongst the Gooner faithful. The worst place to be as I have to endure the taunts and the endless singing of 'We'll never play you again' but cannot respond. It's cold. It's wet. Frankly, I want to go home. And then something happens that brightens my day a little. A gangly, unlikely looking winger we've not had for long picks the ball up in the Arsenal half and runs with it. He runs with pace and intent, and a frisson of expectancy ripples through the travelling fans as we suddenly look like we have a threat...

Imagine, if you will, the following scenario: in the heat of the battle one army is taking an almighty hammering and appears to be encircled, taking losses from all sides. The beleaguered soldiers are in the main young and inexperienced but have a firm belief in their young, charismatic commander who is leading from the front. Despite having lost the best fighters with no hope of reinforcements, slowly but surely and with will and determination things seem to be turning around and the opposing armies are being beaten back inch by inch. Suddenly, just hours before a big campaign to break out of the encirclement, word is sent from behind the front line that the commander is being relieved of his duties. The high command have decided to promote a lieutenant with no experience at all in the hope that he might come good in the hour of need, whilst the commander is told he is no longer fit enough to lead his men, just when it seemed to all that a victory was possible.

If you tuned in to BBC Radio Berkshire after yesterday's football match at London Road, you'd have been forgiven for thinking that Reading Football Club had been sold for a fiver to a demented Oxford-supporting billionaire, who'd then decided to immediately change the name to the 'Thames Valley Arse Drovers', insist we play in yellow and green stripes and formulate a dastardly plan to erase the good name of RFC from the history books. However, no insidious plan had been hatched from Madejski Towers. The fuming texters had chosen to take up Tim Dellor and that other Johnny bloke's offer to 'vent their spleen' after a dismal and fairly inexplicable capitulation to Peterborough. The tone of irate fans bombarding the show was one of apoplectic rage, simmering under a layer of downright disgust at anyone connected with the club. Those in the firing line were the usual suspects of course: the Players, the Manager (and staff), the Chairman and the Director of Football. All received the ire of supporters in shock after a game which we conspired to throw away after a fine start which saw us take a deserved two-goal lead. For some this was the final straw - 'sack Rodgers, I always said we'd struggle with him at the helm' - others saw this as the culmination of two years of decline, 'What's happened to my beloved club!?' asked one inconsolable fan.

A couple of weeks ago you'd be forgiven for thinking that, five games in to a new season under a new management team, Reading FC was a club in some kind of irreversible plummet towards League One. What a difference an away win can make, not only to the league table, but to the overall mood surrounding the club and its supporters. Having not won at home since January, entertaining Sheffield United on the back of two draws, one defeat and precisely no goals was always going to be a tough assignment, and so it proved. Despite taking the lead with a goal from Matt Mills on his Madejski debut it was a 1-3 reversal that prolonged the wait for that elusive home victory. Once again there was plenty of positives, but that lack of quality in the final third that was becoming painfully obvious. Poor old Adam Federici too, the hero of the goalless draw at Swansea City a few days earlier with a penalty save, it was his error that allowed the Blades back in the game. Suddenly the Royals were languishing near the bottom without a win and just one goal from four games. Even for a new manager with a clear rebuilding plan these were testing times for Brendan Rodgers. A midweek Carling Cup fixture against fellow Championship strugglers Barnsley would provide the perfect opportunity to put league woes away for the night and register a victory. Unfortunately, despite being the better side throughout it was the Tykes who progressed to round 3 meaning more misery at the Madejski. A league game at Oakwell a few days later would be a chance to reverse the result against Barnsley. Prior to that two new additions to the squad of Jobi McAnuff and Gregor Rasiak softened the blow of losing out on number one summer target Tommy Smith. Rasiak made the trip to Oakwell but it was Noel Hunt who provided the killer instinct after a disastrous start that saw the Royals go behind within 20 minutes. Maybe this was the youngsters coming of age, being 'blooded' as it were. At that point it would have been easy to capitulate after being outplayed away from home. To the team's credit they dug deep and found something beyond the promising pretty football. Sometimes you have to go direct when required, and Noel Hunt has the poacher instinct that has been is lacking from Shane Long's game. A 3-1 win and things look a lot rosier as we go into the international break. A collective sigh of relief perhaps, from players, management and fans.

The Royals thumped Burton Albion last night by 5 goals to 1. Five thousand people saw a team of youngsters (hang on, ain't that the first team!?) dish out a hammering to the league new boys. Five Royals made their full debut, and Nicholas Bignall bagged a brace. Whatever you say about the opposition this is a fantastic result, and Brendan Rodgers seems to be working some magic already. It's evident we have a lot of young talent at the club, and BR looks like the man to bring that talent through to full effect. The draw for round 2 of the Carling Cup is tonight where the Royals will be a seeded team.

Icelandic midfielder Brynjar Gunnarsson has signed a one year contract. As previously suggested on the 106 Twitter feed he is still very much seen as a man who can do a job in the Championship, and his hunger and commitment have been duly rewarded. Nicky Hammond remarked "He is a very good player, his quality gives him great versatility and he continues to set a good example for the younger players. He has a big part to play this season." I couldn't agree more. Bryn can be vital in helping bring through those youngsters which we all know BR will be keen to do. Not only does he have the proverbial 'good engine' but let's not forget that he has chipped in with some vital goals over the years. Good to have him on board still.

Doyler's off to Wolves then. Loads has been said on this already, so I'll not drone on - after all it was only a matter of who and when, not if. Dunno why but I watched this press conference and it made me feel a little queasy to be honest. He leaves with the good will and blessing of the fans for sure - and Nicky Hammond called him 'our best ever signing'. £80,000 for four fantastic years, and then sold for £6.5m. It's good for the club and the man, but it's certainly a sad moment. He always seemed like a decent sort, but I couldn't care less if he does well or not (never liked Wolves!), sorry but that's football, we move on. Just don't be surprised if he ends up back at our place on loan in April!

It wouldn't be a huge surprise if the new gaffer made a raid for Watford's prize assets, especially as the Vicarage Road outfit are strapped for cash. Likely target is 29 year old Tommy Smith who was instrumental in the Hornet's turnaround last season with 17 goals. He seems to have been around for ages, and I recall he was always an out and out striker, but under Rodgers he has been very effective as a winger, an area we've had problems with recently! Slovak born Hungarian Tamas Priskin catches the eye too, a pacy striker with a deadly finish. Watford fans can sleep easy for a while at least as Reading FC have made it clear that we need to sell to make funds available for any future purchases. That will surely be remedied soon with the predicted sale of Stephen Hunt and Kevin Doyle (a winger and a striker...see where this is going?). Andre Bikey is being watched by Marseilles too, so it seems inevitable that significant changes are imminent.

The new Brendan Rodgers sign on Reading FC's manager's door is only just up and already we've had the first transfer rumour of the close season. We all know what to expect in the next couple of months: rumour, counter-rumour and absurd fantasies are the order of the day. With a new manager in position it's going to provide even more fertile ground for the gossip-mongers, and it'll be our 'big names' that become the subject of such idle speculation. Kevin Doyle is without doubt our prize asset, despite his erratic form last season he's a proven goal scorer at the top level and is an established International for the Republic of Ireland. In the past he's attracted interest from Aston Villa but this week it's Everton who might be interested. A £7m deal that involves his tousle-haired compatriot Stephen Hunt has been mooted, and even if the source is the Daily Star let's pause for a while to contemplate what such a move would mean for the football club. Firstly, if such a deal was in the offing it begs the question, 'who is valued at what in this'? Even die-hard fans of the terrier-winger would concede that Hunty Senior was pretty dreadful for at least 75% of last season, so surely his stock has fallen dramatically since the Toffees were rumoured to be interested last August. At one point he was supposedly worth around £3-4m, yep, we'd bite off an arm and more for that right now. A package deal that involved taking Doyler makes a lot of sense to any would-be suitor, with his (Doyle's) worth surely still around the £5m mark. Let's be honest here the chances are that he wants to leave and ply his trade at the highest level, and who can blame him for that? He signed a contract extension in January but it was no secret that he wanted to get back into the Premier League. We wouldn't want to lose him, but we have to face hard facts here, and BR already has. With at least one more season in the Championship we are prey to top flight clubs looking to bolster there squads with good value signings. Everton won't be banking on Doyle or Hunt, but they'd be tidy additions to a squad that will need bolstering should they wish to improve on their excellent 6th place finish last term. With Europa League thrown into that equation it makes even more sense; they don't have stacks of wonga to chuck around, so Championship quality represents limited risk and high returns should it work out. David Moyles certainly knows how to get the very best from limited resources.

The open secret is almost, finally, very nearly an official announcement as Watford and Reading agreed a compensation package that will pave the way for Brendan Rodgers to take the helm at the Madejski Stadium.

I've been reading a few posts on Watford FC forums recently, as you can imagine they are particularly disgruntled, but the thing that struck me was how highly he was regarded there - even after a relatively short spell in charge. His way is certainly for a passing game that is easy on the eye, so we just need to ensure the right players are there to make that style effective. Nigel Howe has indicated this week that academy players such as Simon Church are sure to feature next season, and Rodgers certainly knows how to get the best from the youngsters as he has already spent time in charge of our youth team. Getting the balance of youth and experience right is the first challenge.

So let the 'renaissance' begin, and we wait with eager anticipation to see BR's first moves in the transfer market!

It seems increasingly likely that current Watford boss Brendan Rodgers will be appointed the new Reading manager some time in the near future. Nicky Hammond is showing due care and diligence in carefully sifting through the applications and with the Hornets keen to retain the services of Rodgers nothing is certain, however it all points to the Irish man taking charge for the new season. Other names in the frame are PNE boss Alan Irvine,  and Darren Ferguson who has guided Peterborough into the Championship. Strangely enough I saw somewhere that bookies Victor Chandler had installed Alan Pardew as second favourite at 9/4. Surely some mistake?! Who do you think would be best for us and why?...

So the inevitable happened, albeit sooner than expected. Steve Coppell resigned after six years as Reading manager late last night. His legacy is one unprecedented success, soured a little latterly by the taste of bitter disappointment. It's clearly the end of an era at Reading FC. Although he ultimately failed to takes us back to the Premier League, it's certainly a sad day for the club. Honest, intelligent and highly principled, we may not see his like again.