As ever in transfer window month, one of the tricks is to watch what's going on elsewhere to work out what might be going on closer to home.
That's why old Ferret's eyes were drawn to West London today and the sight of Matthew Connolly signing on the dotted line as all that Formula One money of the new owners – Bernie Ecclestone and Flavio Briatore, backed by the Indian steel magnate Lakshmi Mittal – starts to flood through the Rs.
In comes the combative Gavin Mahon of Watford fame; in comes Kieran Lee from Manchester United on loan; in comes Plymouth's Hungarian midfielder Akos Buzsaky for ?500,000; in comes Hogan Ephraim from the Hammers for a reported ?800,000.
And in comes 20-year-old Connolly for an undisclosed sum – and on a three-and-a-half year deal to boot.
Why the fuss? Well, Rangers manager Luigi De Canio is – according to many a report – also expected to tie-up a deal for defender Fitz Hall from Wigan.
Fitz Hall is a centre-half; as is Connolly.
Hall deal goes through and Rangers have got two new centre-halves in early – will they need a third in Canary favourite Martin Taylor? Particularly when Mrs T has made it very plain that she's not taking her three young boys to London?
The answer is 'No!'. De Canio has taken his money elsewhere and slapped it on lads who do want to be in London – Hall was, after all, once a Palace boy. Connolly has no trouble in moving across town from the Emirates now that his half-season long loan spell with the Us is over.
“It's very difficult to make the breakthrough at a club like Arsenal, so when QPR made an offer I knew it was the right time to move on,” said Connolly today.
“Arsenal provided me with a great launch pad, but I need to be playing first-team football at my age and this is a fantastic club for me to pursue my career at.”
All of which will go down like a lead balloon with her ladyship at St Andrew's and may do much to explain why all of a sudden she was doing her business through her column in The Sun last week – (a) telling Glenn to up his offer by ?250,000 to match Rangers' bid and (b) telling anyone else out there that Taylor could be their's for a similar sum.
But as Roeder has long known, if the boy's heart is set on settling in Norfolk then unless Ms Brady can drum up a new suitor in double-quick time, she'll be left with the one and only offer on the table – City's ?750,000 bid.
From which Glenn ain't budging. Why should he? He's got the player and his Mrs onside. So he sits and waits.
And with Connolly and Hall now Loftus Road-bound, it looks like Rangers have already moved on.
Tiny is one, small step nearer to becoming a City player before the month is out.
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