Reading FC fend off interest from European sides to secure fresh player agreement | OneFootball

Championship outfit Reading have tied down forward Femi Azeez down to a new two-year contract, according to a Twitter update from journalist Jacque Talbot.

The 21-year-old’s previous deal was due to expire this summer and though he had been offered fresh terms to remain at the Select Car Leasing Stadium, his future was unclear with the attacker seemingly weighing up his options over the past month.

Towards the end of last month, it was reported that Dutch outfit Go Ahead Eagles and Portuguese side Famalicao were both weighing up contract offers for him after seeing him make a full first-team breakthrough last term.

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His 2021/22 campaign was tainted by injury troubles – but adapted to the challenges of the second tier well and has proven to be a versatile option for Paul Ince’s side, able to play as a winger and a striker.

The latter position is one that desperately needs to be strengthened with George Puscas’ future remaining uncertain and Lucas Joao being the subject of a bid from Besiktas.

and the second-tier side have now received another boost, with reporter Talbot claiming that the 21-year-old has put pen to paper on a new deal to keep him at the club until 2024.

Considering his injury troubles, a two-year deal is probably sensible at that point and with the Royals set to be free of restrictions next summer, they may be able to give him a generous pay rise if he impresses.

It may come as a surprise that he was offered a deal in the first place but considering how exciting he looked during the early stages of 2021/22, he is worth taking a chance on and they wouldn’t have been able to claim compensation if they hadn’t offered him a new deal.

At 21, he will only get better if he can remain fit and this is exciting for the Berkshire outfit who may need to rely on some of their academy players to provide squad depth for this upcoming season.

However, they need to make sure the vast majority of these young players are good enough to make the step up and Azeez has already shown he can, so this latest news is promising.

He’s unlikely to be on a huge wage either, so this isn’t exactly an agreement that will prevent other signings from arriving at the Select Car Leasing Stadium in the coming months.