Plymouth Argyle must not waste any time and jump on Reading FC opportunity: View | OneFootball

Plymouth Argyle aren't quite safe in the Championship just yet, but with the club in the driving seat in the race for safety, they can maybe have one eye on transfer business for this summer.

The Pilgrims sit 21st in the Championship, one point above Birmingham City ahead of the final day of the season and there is surely hope among fans that with a triumph at home against Hull City, they can secure a second consecutive season in the second tier for the first time since 2009-10.

They had looked fairly likely for safety during the midway point of the season but the departure of manager Steven Schumacher and many of their loan stars has seen them sucked back into the battle at the bottom.

One such starlet was Finn Azaz, who now plies his trade at Middlesbrough, and Argyle had planned on replacing him with Reading star Femi Azeez. However, no move materialised, and the Pilgrims now find themselves in the situation they are in.

But come this summer, Azeez will be available on a free transfer, and should Plymouth stay up, or even if they come down, he should be a primary target for them in the summer.

Femi Azeez's career so far

The attacker, who has been utlised primarily on the wing this season for Reading, has been one of the third tier's stand-out players.

In a season where he has not missed a single league match, playing 46 times in the division for the Royals, he has scored eight goals and provided nine assists as he helped the Royals avoid the drop despite off-field issues and points deductions.

Having impressed at non-league sides Northwood FC and Wealdstone FC, he joined Reading's academy aged 18, signing on a one-year professional contract in 2019 and initially linking up with the club's under-23 side.

However, having quickly impressed for the youth sides, he was slowly brought through to the senior team and made his debut in the 2020/21 season.

Throughout the next two years, he would make fleeting appearances for the Berkshire side, scoring his first two professional, and Reading, goals in the process.

Then, as Reading headed down to the third tier for this season, Azeez was finally given a starting role and, as the stats detail above, he has not disappointed.

Azeez can be Plymouth's Azaz replacement

Azeez can be the replacement for Azaz in the Plymouth team.

When the Pilgrims lost the English midfielder in January, their main creative outlet disappeared, and with his departure being a recall from loan, the Pilgrims did not recoup money to spend on Azeez as a replacement.

However, the Reading man is now likely to depart on a free transfer, with his contract expiring this summer and his stock extremely high. Reading will be playing League One football again next season and so a Championship move may well tempt him.

Add to this, too, that Azeez will want to be at a more stable club that can promise him secure payment of wages given the issues at the Select Car Leasing Stadium in recent years.

Plymouth, therefore, could be the ideal home, and he will feel wanted by the club, as they seek a replacement for a player they lost months ago, and have yet to find a suitable replacement for.

He may play a slightly different role to Azaz but after a stellar season with the Royals, Azeez could come in and contribute the goals and assists that have been lacking in Azaz's absence.

The 22-year-old is out of contract in the summer and it's an opportunity that Argyle shouldn't miss.