Reading FC Bid For Southend Left Back Rejected

The Royals are seeking to replace the vacant spot left in their squad by Andrew Taylor by bringing in Southend's Ben Coker.

Yesterday, "sports journalist" Pete O'Rourke tweeted that Southend had rejected a bid for the almost-26-year-old left back.

That was then followed up by a more detailed tweet by Southend Echo reporter Chris Phillips.

Genuine news! Cool

So it looks like a genuine piece of news. Stam even suggested they'd be looking in the lower leagues upon his arrival.

In Ben Coker, they're eying up a left-back who played 41 times for Southend last season, scoring once and providing six assists. A decent record. Oh, and because I've never seen him play I'm going to take this opportunity to tell you he's 66 rated on FIFA. And at 25 years of age, his best should be yet to come. Which is great.

Well, sort of. That the club only offered £100,000 suggests they're scraping the bottom of the transfer treasure chest. And the bid being rejected means the club will have to stump up more cash or look elsewhere. This might rumble on a bit.

Oh, and what does this mean for Jordan Obita (formerly #BerkshireNeymar, latterly #BerkshireCarlos)? Simply competition? Or is a position change on the cards?

Appearance stats courtesy of Transfermarkt, the lovable champ.