Reading FC should push to sign Millwall striker who is not fancied by Alex Neil | OneFootball

Macaulay Langstaff will be at the forefront of many clubs’ minds

Reading FC are in need of some additional firepower as the new season approaches, and they could do much worse than weigh up a move for Macaulay Langstaff.

Reading have already lost Jayden Wareham to Exeter City in this window, and Kelvin Ehibhatiomhan’s future is unclear.

They have signed young forward Mark O’Mahony on loan from Brighton and Hove Albion, but will want more support for the League One campaign ahead.

A deal for Langstaff probably won’t be easy, but it’s certainly one the Royals should at least explore.

Langstaff is out of favour at Millwall

Langstaff only moved to Millwall last summer, but already a departure would come as no surprise to most.

The 28-year-old was recruited by the Championship side predominantly on account of his incredible scoring record for Notts County, which saw him net 41 goals in one National League season, followed by notching 28 in League Two in the next campaign.

But his £700k move to the Lions has not gone as planned, reduced to just 34 appearances and one Championship goal.

Langstaff’s future at the Den looked bleak as it was, but their signing of former Middlesbrough striker Josh Coburn for a club-record fee hammered home the fact that the former Notts County man’s time at Millwall was likely up.

Reading need a striker

As previously mentioned, Reading could use some extra firepower for their upcoming third-tier campaign.

Their highest-scoring striker last season was Wareham on six goals, with Ehibhatiomhan one behind.

The former has already moved to Exeter, and the latter is technically now out of contract with the Royals, as he is yet to sign the new deal that has been offered to him.

Reading have landed O’Mahony on loan from Brighton, but the 20-year-old currently has just 13 Championship appearances with Portsmouth and a few Brighton cameos under his belt, so the Royals will not want to rest all their hopes on the talented young striker’s shoulders.

Langstaff is an experienced striker and, although untested at League One level, has shown how lethal he can be in the fourth tier, so it feels likely he could provide something one division higher.

Finances around Langstaff deal would be difficult

Reading are now free from the difficult ownership of Dai Yongge and have Rob Couhig at the helm, but late accounts released earlier this year, showing a loss of £21m a couple of seasons ago, suggest the financial picture will take some time to completely heal at the Select Car Leasing Stadium.

It means Reading will need to tread carefully this summer in terms of spending, but a Langstaff deal is unlikely to be kind to their wallet.

While he hasn’t lit up the Championship and is a year older than when he signed for £700k, there is still plenty of interest in the prime-aged striker based on his full body of work, which could result in a bidding war that would require a substantial fee to win.

Then there is also the issue of his wages, which Capology estimate to stand at £7.5k per week. If he is to sign a multi-year deal at his age, he’ll do so knowing it might be the last big contract of his career, and therefore be looking for a substantial package.

There is a lot, then, for Reading to work out before they can consider Langstaff as a target, but if they can unlock that form he showed at Notts County, it may all look like a bargain a few years down the line.