Newsbites - 4th August 2011
2 days to go until the big kick-off... nerves kicked in yet?
Karacan: There's no hangover (OS) - Jem insists that the Royals' failure at Wembley in May won't affect them this season.
Reading won't be up the creek without a Kanu (GetReading) - if Shane Long goes, Hal Robson-Kanu is more than ready to step up to the plate.
Karacan looking forward to Henry showdown (Reading Chronicle) - Jem is looking forward to pitting his wits against former Royal James Henry on Saturday.
Championship promotion contenders: Reading (GiveMeFootball) - Jemmy's been busy with the press this week - here, some views on Hal's re-signing for Reading.
Transfer news:
Nicholas Bignall has gone on loan to Exeter City of League One for one month, where he's likely to start straight away due to injury problems (GetReading).
Charlton manager Chris Powell has revealed the reasons he moved to sign Ben Hamer to News Shopper.
Alex McCarthy, Reading's England U21 keeper, could be on the move to the SPL with Celtic or Hearts (VitalFootball).
And no transfer round-up would be complete without a Shane Long story so here's one from GiveMeFootball which reckons he's 50/50 between West Ham and Liverpool.
Oh, and if you want to check out the awesome new programme design for the Millwall game, click here - it's designed by supporter Thomas L'Heureux and it's stunning. His website can be found here.