View From The Town End: Jordon Mutch

The Royals confirmed the signing of midfielder Jordon Mutch from Crystal Palace on transfer deadline day, so we got the thoughts of Sam from Palace blog The Eagle's Beak for one of our latest signings.

Why do you think Jordon found himself out of favour at Selhurst Park?

Mutch was signed with the hope that he would add a few goals from midfield. He had struggled to get into the QPR side in his brief spell after joining from Cardiff City, and it's now clear to see why.

He seems to lack any real work ethic and always leaves fans wanting a bit more from him. He found himself behind some talented midfielders early on in his Palace career and struggled to show the determination to earn a regular place in the side.

Are you sad to see him go?

No, quite frankly. Most Palace fans are disappointed that his Palace career didn't pan out as it possibly should have done but there won't be any tears shed over his departure. That's certainly not because Palace fans absolutely despise him, but purely because he doesn't offer anything that we don't already possess. If we stay up and he's a success at Reading, I can certainly see the deal being made permanent.

What are his main strengths?

I think his lack of a main strength is actually what holds him back. He doesn't have a key attribute that you can pin to him and discussions about him never include 'Mutch adds X to the side'.

It's probably important that your fans judge him based on his time at Cardiff where his goalscoring ability was his major threat, but as a Palace fan I really can't vouch for that. In fact, he ends his Palace career with a grand total of zero goals and zero assists in 40 competitive appearances. He has played in a number of different positions for us and it's difficult to decipher which is his best — largely down to his lack of a defining attribute.

Any particular weaknesses?

Again, based on his Palace career, it would have to be his creativity, although Cardiff fans would probably have that down as his best attribute. His runs are always very straight and his passing often lacks incisiveness and invention.

He's what most would describe as a 'luxury player' — he'll be great if the players around him are performing well, unlike the majority of his time at Palace, but he's not the type of player who single-handedly bails you out of trouble. Again, his seeming lack of motivation prevents him from reaching the levels that he should have done at Palace. Clearly talented but will never consistently show it.

Any stories of what he's like off the pitch?

He enjoys cryptic social media activity. If he's not enjoying himself, he won't hesitate to hint at it through social media. He once 'liked' an Instagram picture of Roberto Firmino celebrating a goal against us which didn't go down well at all. His excuse that he 'accidentally tapped the post twice (to 'like' the picture)' was pathetic and an apology would have been a much easier thing to issue.

He also tweeted 'buzzing for you' to Alex McCarthy when your former goalkeeper swapped Palace for Southampton. It seemed a bit of a 'I wish it was me' kind of message but it was probably intended to be harmless.

Other than that, he keeps himself to himself off the pitch and is unlikely to be the type of footballer who finds his lifestyle spoken of negatively in the press.

Finally, how do you think he'll get on back in the Championship?

I think he has a huge chance to kick-start his career. If he can spend the next five months playing well, then he might regain the confidence that has never been present at Palace.

A step down a division is a good, sensible move for him. He's previously played well in the second-tier and he gets the chance to be part of a promotion-chasing side.