The Royals made significant investments in George Puscas and Sone Aluko, which has now proven to be a setback. With Reading facing serious financial challenges, it’s clear to see some of the money they’ve spent in the past hasn’t paid off as expected.
Under controversial owner Dai Yongge, the club hasn’t always faced financial struggles. When the Chinese businessman initially came on board, he was willing to spend lavishly, a decision that has contributed to the current challenges faced by the Royals.
Dai Yongge and Dai Xiu Li took over the club in May 2017, witnessing the club’s unfortunate loss in the Championship play-off final to Huddersfield Town shortly after.
However, this setback didn’t dissuade the new owners from making significant investments. They splashed out £7.5 million to acquire Nigeria international Sone Aluko as part of their efforts to secure a return to the Premier League following relegation in 2013.
The Royals continued to splash cash, and two years later they spent another £7.5million to bring Inter Milan striker George Puscas to Berkshire.
This is a far cry from their current financial situation, but wasting this money was the start of the financial downfall for the club.
Sone Aluko and George Puscas’ time at Reading
Aluko arrived at the Select Car Leasing Stadium in 2017 and stayed for four years, albeit with a loan stint at Chinese club Beijing Renhe in 2019. Despite a promising start that included three assists in his initial five games, his time at the club turned out to be a disappointing piece of business as he struggled to make a significant impact.
He scored just twice, and registered five assists in 39 appearances during his first season, and things would get worse in the years that followed.
He made just 20 appearances in all competitions during the first-half of the 2018/19 campaign, scoring once and assisting once, before spending the second-half of the season on loan in China.
When Aluko returned to Berkshire in the summer of 2019, he was joined by new signing George Puscas, only pushing the Nigerian further out of the first-team fold.
Aluko’s season was limited to just six appearances, with four of them occurring in the FA Cup. On the other hand, Puscas had a more productive first campaign, scoring 14 goals in 42 appearances, which was a respectable return.
Aluko’s final season at Reading, the 2020/21 season, saw him experience a mini-resurgence under Veljko Paunovic, playing in 36 matches. On the contrary, Puscas faced challenges with injuries and managed to participate in only 22 games, scoring four goals during that period.
Aluko was released in the summer of 2021 after a four-year spell where he never reached the expected heights of a £7.5million player, and he joined Ipswich, where he remains today.
Regarding Puscas, he stayed with Reading for the first half of the 2021/22 season before going on loan to Serie B side Pisa for the second half of that season. He then had a season-long loan with Genoa for the 2022/23 season before being released by Reading in the summer of 2023.
Spending around £15 million on the duo and getting a total of 25 goals and 13 assists from 193 appearances falls short of expectations. This underperformance has led Reading supporters to view their time at the club as a complete waste of money.