Reading FC: Crystal Palace embarrassment may intensify Dai Yongge frustration: View | OneFootball

The decision to sell Caylan Vickers was a painful one - and that pain returned after a recent U21s game.

Reading offloaded quite a few promising players during the January transfer window, including Nelson Abbey.

Abbey had been part of a leaky defence at the Select Car Leasing Stadium, but he showed real quality on the ball, and his pace and strength was a real asset too.

Clearly, he still had to make improvements to his game, but he was starting regularly for the Royals and had become an important part of their first team.

Often starting alongside Tyler Bindon, he didn't have the benefit of having an experienced central defender alongside him, but the current Olympiacos player was still able to perform fairly well before his move to Greece in January.

Tom Holmes and Tom McIntyre were also sold, but two other sales made during that window may come back to hurt the Berkshire side in the long term.

Taylan Harris was sold to Luton Town - and that was a real shame for the Royals and their fans - because they had seen him score on his professional debut against Exeter City in an emphatic 9-0 EFL Trophy win last year.

Harris could have been useful this season, but he is no longer at the club following his switch to Kenilworth Road, and the Berkshire side may see him thrive in the future.

Caylan Vickers' move away from the SCL Stadium was also painful, because he had stepped up well to the first team during the first half of the 2024/25 campaign, but was sold to Brighton and Hove Albion during the winter window earlier this year.

Caylan Vickers' masterclass against Crystal Palace U21s

Vickers has been unable to make an impact in Brighton's first team at this stage, but that isn't a surprise, considering they are an established Premier League team.

When he made the move to the Amex Stadium, it was unclear whether he had made the right decision, and it still remains to be seen whether this decision will pay dividends or not.

However, his hat-trick against Crystal Palace U21s last weekend reinforces just how much of a talent he is, and why he was wanted by the Seagulls in the first place.

Capitalising on a slice of luck for his first goal, he took his second goal well from a cross, controlling his shot to ensure it ended up in the back of the net.

He was then able to secure his hat-trick later on in the game, contributing to the move that allowed him to grab his third and Brighton's eighth in a 10-0 win as the U21s embarrassed their rivals.

Caylan Vickers could have been a real asset for Reading FC this season

The frustrating thing for the Royals' fanbase is the fact Vickers could have been a major first-team contributor this term.

He thrived more when he played through the middle and it's clear that he was comfortable in a 4-2-2-2 system.

Ruben Selles opted to play the youngster out wide when he moved away from that formation and he wasn't able to impress as much there.

However, Vickers could have been a decent player to have in a fairly narrow 4-3-3, with his trickery able to cause problems.

Current loanee Chem Campbell has often been seen on both the left and right side of the pitch, being given the license to move about fairly freely, and that's how he was able to get his first goal against Burton Albion at the start of this month.

Vickers would have been a real threat as a roaming figure and a much-needed option out wide following the end of Paul Mukairu and Dom Ballard's loans.

With Femi Azeez also departing the club during the summer, they don't have a huge number of wing options at this stage, so having a player like Vickers in the team would have been ideal.

He did fairly well during his first season in senior football and he would have only got better, considering he's only 19.

Ultimately, he was sold to raise funds to pay the bills and that's a decision that Dai Yongge willingly took.

He should have been in the process of selling the club well before then, with his liquidity issues becoming an issue during the 2022/23 season, but he is yet to leave the building and that has frustrated the Berkshire side's fans.

Their frustration with Yongge will only have been intensified by seeing Vickers starring for Brighton U21s as they put 10 past Palace's age-group side.