It could be shaping up to be one of those pre-seasons where we hang on every word printed about one of our big players.

Much speculation over the weekend on how we should interpret Brede Hangeland’s body language. He very demonstratively ran towards the Hammersmith End and punched the badge on his shirt when the fans were seranading him before the game on Sunday. The giant defender also acknowledged the supporters who unfurled a big banner in the Johnny Haynes Stand by applauding them and waving at the end of the warm-up and throwing his shirt towards them as the players made their way around the ground during the end-of-season lap of honour. The frustrating truth is that there’s no way of knowing whether the player was saying a dignified goodbye or just celebrating an outstanding season.

The Sun had us all worried with their report of a big money move from Arsenal at the weekend. The general consensus was that if they offered the kind of money suggested – £15m – Fulham would find it very difficult to hang onto the player. The Mirror has picked up the baton this morning, but the fee’s suddenly halved to £8m. I fancy that would be too low for Fulham to sell – and, of course, Hangeland’s future hinges on the outcome of the contract negotiations that we’ve been told are nearing completion.

If David Wheater – someone with no international experience who has just been relegated from the Premier League – has a £9m price tag slapped upon his head, then how much is Hangeland worth?