Published: Thursday, 19th June, 2008 10:00
Little rejects offers to remain a Royal
By Anthony Smith
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Staying put: In-demand Glen Little is poised to sign a new contract with Reading and make up for lost time.
GLEN Little has rejected several offers from rival clubs and is poised to pen a new deal with Reading.
The 32-year-old’s contract expired at the end of last season putting a host of managers on alert.
Reports in the Midlands suggest Coventry City boss Chris Coleman is keen to take the wing wizard to the Ricoh Arena, while his former club Crystal Palace and Norwich City are also believed to have shown an interest.
But Little already had a one-year offer from the Royals on the table and he is now ready to accept.
He told The Chronicle: “I had a few things in the pipeline but you kind of expect that when you reach the end of your contract and you become a free transfer.
“You have the right to speak to other clubs, to see who’s out there and what is available. It’s what footballers do.
“But I’d like to think I will have everything tied up at Reading before the end of the week.”
The Royals desperately missed Little’s creativity on the right of midfield last season.
He was ruled out for almost the entire campaign through injury and Steve Coppell’s side lost their fight to stay in the Premier League.
Since then the ex-Burnley star has been pounding the treadmill in a bid to reach maximum fitness before the launch of the Championship season which starts with a trip to Nottingham Forest on Saturday, August 9.
“Normally players are just glad for a break at this time of the year but not me,” he declared.
“I had a week away in Portugal but, other than that, I’ve been training hard in the gym and doing a lot of running.
“Not many people are around so it’s just been me and Nicky Shorey. I want to be right up to speed for the start of pre-season.
“Last season couldn’t have finished at a worse time for me. I had a calf injury for two weeks but I was fit almost straight after the last game against Derby when it was too late.”
Reading are second favourites with most bookmakers to make an immediate return to the top-flight.
Three seasons ago they won the Championship title with a record 106 points and the £11 million in parachute payments they will receive should give them a clear advantage over most other teams.
However, Little does not think it will be that easy. He warned: “Forest away is a difficult start for us. In fact, there will be no easy games because we’re up against new teams and players who we have never seen before. That is one thing we must guard against – the surprise factor.
“When we were promoted to the Premier League teams didn’t know us or what we were about and I think that worked to our advantage.
“But the boot is on the other foot now because we’re the new ones in the Championship and you can never be sure how it is going to go.
“The most important thing is to get off to a good start, we will know a lot more after the first six or seven games.”
The Royals’ faithful saw their side win just 10 of their 38 Premier League games last season, as well as suffering 22 defeats.
But Little insisted: “In many respects the fixtures coming out are quite exciting this season because we have promotion to aim for.
“No matter how optimistic you are, the best we could have hoped for in the Premier League was to finish mid-table. Getting beaten most weeks wasn’t much fun either.
“But in the Championship we have something realistic to go for rather than fourth from bottom. The fans can hope to see a bit more excitement again.”
And he declared this season’s Championship stronger than ever: “In recent years there have been clubs like Southend, Colchester and Crewe in the Championship but now it seems there are only the big clubs.
“You only have to look at some of the grounds we will be visiting – they’re all great venues for football.
“The three relegated teams have all got superb set-ups while Swansea, Forest and Doncaster who all came up also have new grounds.
“For me it’s probably the nicest Championship there has ever been and I’m confident we will have a good season.”
Meanwhile, Reading players report back for pre-season duty on Thursday, July 3.
USA goalkeeper Marcus Hahnemann is making a good recovery back in America following an operation to remove 14 pins from his hand and should be fit by then.
Scott Golbourne is recovering from a hip injury and young defender Scott Davies, who helped Aldershot clinch the Conference title, will be out for at least another month following surgery on his heel.
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