Championship clubs set sights on out-of-contract Reading FC star
01/13/2025 05:21 AM
Reading FC goalkeeper Joel Pereira has interest from Championship clubs as his contract with the Royals winds down, as per the Mirror (Transfer news live, 13/01/25, 09:50).
Reading FC are constantly battling uncertainty and obscurity with the fight against owner Dai Yongge a seemingly everlasting one.
The Royals have been dealt a tough card yet again this year and the challenge just got tricker with Ruben Selles leaving for Hull City. Once again though, the team has performed well against the odds, starting well under Noel Hunt.
The Berkshire club are no strangers to interest in key players either, and it seems the latest to draw admiring glances is goalkeeper Joel Pereira.
According to the Mirror, the 28-year-old shot-stopper has Championship clubs eyeing a winter swoop. Pereira’s contract with Reading FC expires at the end of the season and admirers may look to prise him away from the Select Car Leasing Stadium.
However, the report dos say that Pereira may well opt to stay put this month despite the interest from a higher league.
The Royals are braced for offers for their key players and it remains to be seen if they have the resolve or finances to turn down such bids.
More on Pereira
Reading FC number one Pereira is a well-travelled player, though he has spent much of his career on these shores.
The Swiss-born ‘keeper started out in the Neuchatel Xamax academy before heading to Manchester United in 2012. From there, he spent spells on loan with Rochdale, Belenenses, Vitoria Setubal, KV Kortrijk, Hearts and Huddersfield Town before eventually leaving the Red Devils permanently in 2021 to join RKC Waalwijk.
After two years there, Pereira returned to English shores with Reading, where he has kept nine clean sheets in 32 games since September 2023.
A significant detail
One factor not mentioned in the report is that Pereira actually has a one-year extension clause in his contract at Reading.
The detail was confirmed in the announcement of his signing in in 2023. So, while he is out of contract at the end of this season, the option is there to keep him until the summer of 2026.
That will strengthen the Royals’ negotiating position if bids do come in this month, and it provides security for Pereira beyond the end of this season if he remains this winter.
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