Club Brugge Rivalling Reading For Rakels?

There appears to have been another twist in the ongoing Deniss Rakels saga. The Lithuanian, who had seemingly been set for a move to Reading from current side KS Cracovia in Poland, is now reportedly being pursued by Belgian side Club Brugge. This being claimed by Voetbalkrant.com.

According to the Belgian site, Rakels' departure from Cracovia is becoming increasingly inevitable, with the striker going AWOL last week. He was punished by his current club for his actions, and is now training with the reserves. Therefore, it's unlikely that the Polish side will want to keep the player on their books.

Interestingly, Voetbalkrant notes that Rakels might not even be the kind of striker that Brugge needs. The Blue-Black (as their nickname inventively calls them) are in the market for quality attacking reinforcements, preferably a target man. However, Rakels' style is more that of a mobile forward, not one who can hold the ball up and bring others into play.

On the whole, as far as Reading should be concerned in getting their man, I'm not too concerned by this. The Royals' interest has already been well-established and, if reports are to be believed, Rakels has already completed a medical - against the wishes of his current employers - in order to force through a move to Berkshire. Even this latest article notes that Reading are in pole position to seal the forward's signature. However, with only a couple of days left in this transfer window, the Royals will need to act fast.