Reading’s season has been defined by the contrast between their activities on the pitch and those off it.
In isolation, the Royals are having a good season, pushing for a play-off spot with a young and inexperienced group. Despite losing manager Ruben Selles to Hull City in December, the team is in excellent form and has surprised many.
Behind the scenes, however, the situation remains perplexing, aggravating, and downright unsettling for fans, players, and management.
Reading fans may be concerned about a repetition of last year’s transfer window, which threatened to disrupt their team’s upward momentum.
Reading must avoid selling players for less than they are worth
Throughout the season, there have been hopes that the ownership issue at the Select Car Leasing Stadiums will become clearer and Dai Yongge’s stint with the team will come to an end, but these hopes have yet to be realised.
Instead, it has left the Royals open to bids from others for some of its key players, which will further erode the momentum they have built throughout the season.
When asked which mistake his team should not repeat in the January transfer window, Football League World’s Reading Fan Pundit, Johnny Hunt, said: “The biggest mistake our club can’t repeat, hopefully, is having to get rid of players for small amounts of money, as we did in January last year with the likes of Tom Holmes and Tom McIntyre, though Holmes did come back.”
| Tom Holmes Reading FC stats 2023/24 (FotMob) | |
|---|---|
| Appearances (starts) | 13 (10) |
| Minutes played | 918 |
| Goals (assists) | 0 (0) |
| Pass accuracy | 80.2% |
| Tackle success | 77.8% |
| Duel success | 65.6% |
| Aerial duel success | 70% |
| Interceptions | 15 |
| Recoveries | 48 |
“We don’t have the depth to cover, but we know the club’s financial condition is severe.
“Another difficulty is selecting players that are not a good fit for us. Brandon Barker was definitely not at that level a couple of seasons ago, when he came in on a short-term contract under Paul Ince and performed horribly.”
Johnny said, “We’ve had a few random players, and I think one of the worst ones was Jordan Mutch under Japp Stam, he was pretty average.”
“But the greater issue for us is definitely to keep that squad together during the transfer window. We’re halfway through it now, so we just have to keep going and building.”
Two of Reading’s stars are already being targeted
While they will want to keep their key players, as history has shown, they will find it extremely difficult to do so.
The January transfer window has already sparked interest in Charlie Savage, Harvey Knibbs, Sam Smith, and Tyler Bindon. Other teams are expected to boost their interest as the deadline approaches.
Despite poor prior experiences, Reading has fought against the odds in recent seasons and will continue to do so, regardless of whether their current players stay in Berkshire.
Compared to last season, the Royals are in a solid league position, which may have an impact on their players, with the prospect of returning to the Championship a major draw.
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