Familiar Reading FC star should be on Plymouth Argyle’s radar as Morgan Whittaker replacement: View | OneFootball

Plymouth Argyle have a fight on their hands to remain in the Championship, with the final day of the season looming.

Whether they are playing in the second or third tier of English football next season, they are sure to lose their star man Morgan Whittaker.

Replacing Whittaker is integral for Argyle and a former target, currently of Reading FC, is an ideal candidate.

The future of Morgan Whittaker

Whittaker has become the worst-kept secret in the EFL when it comes to his potency in green and white.

The original loan move that took him from Swansea City down to Devon was hugely impressive and he has since gone from strength to strength since signing for Plymouth Argyle permanently.

European football beckoned in January as Italian side Lazio came calling, only for the club to reject their advances.

It would be a shock if the Pilgrims are able to retain Whittaker’s services in the summer given his exploits.

19 goals and eight assists is a remarkable return in the league given that the forward is playing for a relegation-threatened team.

It wasn’t that long ago that he was challenging the likes of Sammie Szmodics (Blackburn Rovers) and Adam Armstrong (Southampton) at the top of the Championship scoring charts. He has struggled to maintain the pace of late but that won’t have harmed his marketability whatsoever.

Argyle will likely receive a fee of 10 or 20 times the reported fee – north of £1 million – they spent on Whittaker and so reinvesting that amount of money well will have a monumental impact on the Devon club.

One player who could go some way to replacing Whittaker, who was included in the Championship Team of the Season, is Reading’s Harvey Knibbs.

Reading FC star that Argyle should target

Argyle reportedly made an approach for Knibbs last season, during his time with Cambridge United.

He impressed for the Us in League One and was deserving of the transfer attention he received from further afield.

The Greens saw a bid rejected for his services during Steven Schumacher’s managerial rein, with the current Stoke City boss then admitting that it was “one we might have to revisit in the summer".

Knibbs instead made a move to the Select Car Leasing Stadium and he has taken his game to another level since signing for Reading.

The Royals have faced a huge number of off the field issues that have endangered the future of the football club and made things difficult on the pitch as well but they still did enough on the pitch to remain in League One despite a points deduction.

Reading boasted a superb attacking unit this season, with Knibbs, Sam Smith, Femi Azeez and Lewis Wing being just a few of the standouts.

Knibbs, who is 25 years old, contributed a remarkable 16 goals and six assists to the cause in all competitions.

Only Smith outscored the former Cambridge man in the league whilst Wing was the only Reading player to contribute to more goals overall.

Knibbs has made it clear that he is far too good to be playing in the third tier and so the Championship is the next logical step for the former Aston Villa youngster.

It is unlikely that Whittaker’s impact can be replaced by a single player, but adding Knibbs as well as a striker to the Argyle squad would perhaps be money well spent.

Avoiding relegation could well play a major part in the club’s chances of making this wish come true and so a positive result against Hull City is integral for Plymouth Argyle in many ways.

His numbers prove that he has grown season on season, at a steady rate, making this move perfect for his current trajectory.

The previous pursuit of Knibbs was perfectly understandable and this summer, if and when Whittaker departs, this interest has to be renewed.