Reading FC: Ron Gourlay's "exciting" Fulham transfer prediction was wide of the mark | OneFootball

The Royals should have benefitted from the arrival of Sone Aluko, but he failed to make his mark in Berkshire.

Reading endured a very busy transfer window back in the summer of 2017 under Ron Gourlay.

Gourlay was appointed during that summer, following the arrival of current owners Dai Yongge and Dai Xiu Li, and this looked to be a good addition on paper.

Having had experience at Chelsea, Gourlay had an excellent CV before his arrival at the Select Car Leasing Stadium.

Shortly after the Royals appointed Gourlay, they got busy in the transfer market, with Jon Dadi Bodvarsson, Vito Mannone, Mo Barrow, Leandro Bacuna and Dave Edwards all joining.

On paper, these looked to be shrewd signings, with Bodvarsson a talented forward, Mannone an experienced keeper, Barrow previously shining at Swansea City and Edwards doing well at Wolverhampton Wanderers before his move to Berkshire.

Bacuna's arrival was questioned by some, with quite a few Aston Villa fans criticising him during his time in the Midlands, but he didn't have a bad CV either when he moved to the Royals.

Having reached the play-off final during the previous season, the Berkshire outfit looked to be in a great position to go on and secure promotion, and hopes of a Premier League return were strengthened further when Sone Aluko made the move from Fulham.

Ron Gourlay's comments after Sone Aluko's Reading FC move

He arrived from a potential 2017/18 promotion rival, with Jaap Stam's side beating the Cottagers in the play-off semi-final at the end of the previous season.

Strengthening themselves whilst weakening a potential fellow promotion candidate, he looked to be a good addition for the Royals, with the player registering eight goals and 12 assists in 45 league appearances during the 2016/17 season.

Being signed for a reported £7m, it was no surprise when then-CEO Gourlay talked the player up after he arrived at the SCL Stadium.

He told the club's media team: "Acquiring a player of Aluko’s unquestionable talent demonstrates this club’s ambition and hunger for more success.

"I am very pleased that Sone has opted to become a part of what we are trying to build here at Reading and I am sure he will prove an exciting addition to our first team squad."

Sone Aluko failed to live up to expectations at Reading FC

Unfortunately, Aluko's impact was limited during his time at the SCL Stadium and that's a real shame, because he made such a good impression at Craven Cottage and was arguably in the peak years of his career when he moved to Berkshire.

His time at the club wasn't all bad - and he scored a vital goal against Queens Park Rangers in Paul Clement's first game in charge, which helped to keep the Royals in the Championship at the end of the 2017/18 season.

It was a fantastic goal from Aluko too - and he would have been pleased to have made that contribution.

But he was unable to build on that, registering just one goal and one assist in two seasons (2018/19 and 2019/20) and spending time out on loan at Chinese side Beijing Renhe.

Returning to the SCL Stadium for the final year of his contract in the summer of 2020, he had the chance to re-establish himself as a valuable first-teamer in Berkshire.

In fairness to him, he showed some promise under Veljko Paunovic and enjoyed some good moments during the 2020/21 season, with an excellent move finished by the ex-Cottagers putting the Royals 2-0 up away at AFC Bournemouth.

Unfortunately, it was too little, too late, and looking at his record as a whole at the SCL Stadium, he wasn't worth retaining.

The fact he was recruited for a reported £7m and left for nothing is a travesty - and Gourlay's comments about the winger being an "exciting addition" failed to come true.

Aluko had the potential to be extremely useful on the right wing, with a pacy Barrow on the left, but the latter proved to be a much more successful addition than the former in the end.