Dowie tells of transfer plans

Iain Dowie has this afternoon warned Charlton fans that although new signings are in the pipeline, they aren't likely to materialise until after the Word Cup. I think we all kind of assumed that really, but it's nice to actually hear the man confirm that 'friendly talks' has taken place with other clubs, and the ground work has already been laid down behind the scenes.

"Very few clubs have completed any transfers so far this summer because of the World Cup, and the situation we are in is no different. One of the reasons I have been out at the World Cup was to see at first hand a number of targets from clubs both at home and abroad that we are actively pursuing, and we're getting close on several fronts. We've had a series of friendly talks and we're close to sealing some deals that I believe will be exciting for both the fans and the club itself.
We're looking at a number of players, including some younger acquisitions. I'm very much into joined-up thinking and planning for the longer term so supporters can expect some good buys for the future as well." - Iain Dowie

See the Official site for the full story.

The most commonly linked named remain Sidwell, Mears, and Jason Roberts, while other less touted possibilities are the likes of Trinidad and Tobago midfielder Carlos Edwards, and even veteran Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink if you believe Clubcall.

With regards to Sidwell the more I hear about him the less bothered I am about actually signing him. Reading fans who I speak to regularly have told me that they aren't too bothered about keeping him at the Madejski because of his tepid form last season, and the comments he made a couple of weeks ago about wanting £16,000 per week because he has a wife and kid to feed also didn't go down particularly well with me. I know that we need a ball-winning midfielder, but do we really want a contract rebel who has always maintained throughout the pay dispute that his primary wish is to remain with the Royals? I remember posting a while ago about only signing players who view Charlton as a dream move, and I'm not quite sure Sidwell fits that bill. I wouldn't moan if we signed him mind you, but I do have the odd reservation or two.

Here are his latest comments.

"Charlton are the only team to have tabled an official offer. We spoke to them and they offered me a certain amount. I have since told Reading to try to match that because my preference is to stay, but they haven't done that, so that's why it's all in a bit of a limbo at the moment.
I'm a South London boy and Charlton would be closer to home, if it works out great, but as I say, I want to stay at Reading and if I can do a deal I'll be very happy.
I've done a lot to get Reading into the position they are in today and should be rewarded for that. I'm a bit disappointed the club don't value me like I think they should. And it's not just me. A few of the lads should be rewarded with contracts. I am making reasonable demands that the club can pay. Reading are in the Premiership now, not League 2 where some people at the club think we still are. The whole club needs to be run like a Premiership club." - Steve Sidwell

That partial statement is taken from his latest diary entry on icons.com. To read the rest of it, go here. You will need to log in to view the diary. Just choose username cynicathletic and password cynicathletic. It may chuck you back to the main page once you are logged in, but find Sidwell on player A - Z, and then click the diary link to access the members content.