Summer Departures: How Are They Doing Now?

With a lot of players arriving this summer, it's interesting to remember just how many had left in the preceding weeks. As contracts ran down, Reading lost key squad members (and some hangers on) all over the pitch, partially in an attempt to cut down a bloated wage bill. But how have they fared since leaving for pastures new?

The first team

In the early stages of the summer transfer window, Reading fans' hopes were that at least some of the the trio of Adam Federici, Alex Pearce and Jem Karacan would stay at the club. Having each more or less made their name in Berkshire, they all went on to turn out on plenty of occasions for the Royals (209, 194 and 155 appearances respectively). Unfortunately, they've had little success at their new clubs...

Adam Federici followed up an impressive spell at the Madejski with a well-earned move to the Premier League with recently promoted Bournemouth. The Aussie hasn't yet broken into the Cherries' first team, but performed heroics against Preston in one of his two league cup appearances. With the score 2-2 after full time, Fedders saved three penalties in the resulting shoot-out to send the away side into the next round. He's found game time hard to come by in the Premiership so far though, with ex-Celtic stopper Artur Boruc keeping both gloves firmly on the no.1 jersey.

Alex Pearce divided opinion during his time with Reading, and arguably never got back to his 2011/12 best in his final few seasons at the club. Nonetheless, Pearce won the attention of Paul Clement, moving to become part of Derby County's latest promotion charge. Like Federici, the Irishman has struggled for minutes, also only appearing in the league cup, and only once at that. Pearce's solitary appearance for the Rams was at Fratton Park, where the hosts defeated Derby 2-1 on their way to facing Reading in the next round. However, Pearce has turned out for Derby's under 21 side in a 3-0 win, with academy manager Darren Hassall praising his attitude and the effect Pearce has on the team's youngsters...

"Alex Pearce and Jamie Hanson both came in from the first-team squad and they set the example through their performance. They also did it through the way they were in the dressing room beforehand and during the warm-up before the game, while their performance and talking on the pitch throughout the 90 minutes was fantastic. Alex has accumulated a lot of Championship experience with Reading and he has come in and set the example."

Jem Karacan has fared worse than Adam Federici or Alex Pearce, racking up a mere 24 minutes of first team football since arriving at Galatsaray on a free in the summer. Having not started any games, he came on against Bursaspor in the Super Cup, and Gaziantepspor in the league. That's a disappointing return for someone who was a fans' favourite at Reading, but he's up against strong competition in the likes of Hamit Altintop and Wesley Sneijder. On a brighter note, Jem Karacan did come back on the radar a few weeks ago when he made a sizeable donation to the #21ForDolan campaign. The academy graduate admirably gave £300 to cycling duo Ben Strickland and Will Davis, later tweeting this...

#21fordolan .. great support for someone who has been one of the biggest influences in my career. Get well soon Eamo!!! ❤️

— Jem Paul Karacan (@JemKaracan6) August 13, 2015

Squad players

Steve Clarke made something of a squad clear-out in the summer with the departures of Mikkel Andersen, Danny Guthrie, Zat Knight, Yakubu and Stephen Kelly, although the latter was offered a deal by the club. Although some had impressed earlier on in their Reading careers, it's probably fair to say that Steve Clarke hadn't seen enough for them to be part of his longer term plans.

Mikkel Andersen has done well at his new club FC Midtjylland in his homeland Denmark, with 11 appearances under his belt. Impressively, the Dane has only conceded three goals so far - twice in the league and once in the Europa League against Club Brugge.

Yakubu was signed last January as a cheap gamble and, well, didn't really do anything after his goal at Derby County in the FA Cup. He's since moved on to Turkish side Kayserispor on a year long deal, with the possibility of a longer one if he proves his worth.

Unlike those two, Danny Guthrie arrived in Berkshire as a big signings, being one of the marquee acquisitions at the beginning of the recent ill-fated Premier League campaign. Despite looking very promising back in the Championship, his later time at the club was blighted by injury and inconsistent form, ending up on loan at Fulham. He eventually joined Blackburn Rovers, where he's played in all but one of their league games.

Zat Knight and Stephen Kelly also left the club in the summer on free transfers. Now both well into their 30s and towards the end of their careers, they're still to find a club. It's hard to see either of them making an impression this season, but I'd say they're both solid enough prospects for lower league football at the least.

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Do you think any of the above could make a difference to the squad now? Or are you glad we got rid of them all? Vote in our poll and leave us a comment below.