View From The Town End: Yann Kermorgant

We spoke to Cherries fan Carey Paton about what Reading can expect from new signing Yann Kermorgant.

So what ype of player are we getting with Mr Kermorgant?

You're getting a player who will be 100% committed to the team, the club and everything associated with it. He doesn't do anything half-hearted. At his best as a number 10, he's a very intelligent player - he'll see the passes that no-one else (including defenders) will - I particularly remember him making an astonishing pass off his back the season before last - and with a bit of patience, the rewards you'll get from letting him build up relationships with other strikers are immense. He'll set them up and he'll score them as well. Just do a quick YouTube search, some of his best moments with us are on there!

Some Reading fans have questioned us signing a 34-year-old, has he shown any signs of decline since arriving on the South Coast?

If anything, the more games he gets, the better he gets. He's mentioned before in interviews that he feels 5 years younger than he actually is due to a late start to his footballing career after having leukaemia as a teenager. He will never be a pacy player, so don't go expecting that, which was part of the reason he fell down the pecking order with us. The injuries we had meant that we had to go to one up front and five in midfield, rendering his position null and void.

What are his biggest strengths?

So many. His vision and intelligence on the ball are a joy to watch - he's also great in the air and takes a great free kick. Just check our game at Brighton last year for an example of how he can win a game, scored the first with an amazing free kick and set up Callum Wilson to score the second. He'll see the threaded pass for players to run onto, with great timing. Also very useful for corners - he'll put in a glancing header, score an overhead kick or lash one in from the edge of the area.

Any weaknesses?

Lack of pace is probably his biggest weakness. He'll also need a bit of time and patience to get his match fitness back - he's started very few games this season - but when he does, the difference he makes will be plain to see.

Finally, what's he like off the pitch? Any fond memories?

He's just very honest and approachable. Just read the tweets from Bournemouth fans about him leaving to see the sort of standing he has with us. And not just a small minority of us, either. Was with us just shy of 2 years, but has achieved hero status in that short time. Very very rare. It's no coincidence that both us and Charlton love him - we all know he has to leave to get game time, but we're all devastated, as were the Charlton fans when he had to leave them to come to us.

At last year's end of season bash (the biggest one we've ever had, for obvious reasons) he ensured that he went round to every single table and shook hands with everyone. No-one told him to.

He also spent most of his evening after we got promoted against Bolton in the club with the squad (Eddie was there too, nothing untoward) drinking chatting and celebrating with a small group of us fans, whilst others partied.

Put it this way, there are a few of us already planning trips to the Madejski. I'm already booked in for the Burnley game, with more to come.

Enjoy, you've got a fantastic player there - without him we wouldn't be in the Premier League, that's for sure. I'll see you all on Feb 13th. Please look after me, I may get emotional...

Thanks again to Carey and you can follow her on Twitter @CareyPaton