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Summer Transfers

Reading finally broke their self-imposed transfer embargo with the signing of Simon Cox, and from there some business has been done, but perhaps not as much as Reading fans would have wanted considering Adkins hankering to "strengthen all over". Yet again Reading's rhetoric somewhat overstates their actions, although I doubt they will have expected the takeover to take as long as it has getting through the Football League tests.

In

Simon Cox | Nottingham Forest
Cox, the first permanent signing in over a year has started his second term pretty well. Although not having the best game back at the City Ground he scored the only goal in the game with Middlesbrough, and got a consolation against Huddersfield. However he's definitely not cut out for the lone striker role, so let's hope that he doesn't have to play it too often.

Jamie Mackie | Nottingham Forest (loan)
The quintessential workhorse, Mackie hasn't really had a chance to impress yet but with half the team out he's bound to have his shot in the first team. Whether he'll be first choice with Blackman and McCleary fit on both wings remains to be seen, but it's necessary cover.

Oliver Norwood | Huddersfield Town
Looked comfortable when he came on for his debut at Forest alongside side Kuhl. Again, good back-up but probably won't be first team after the midfield trio of Williams, Guthrie, and club captain Karacan are back. That said, none of them have outstanding medical records so will probably get his fair share of game time.

Anton Ferdinand | Unattached
Probably the only real 'gamble', hasn't played in England since January last year, and wasn't even getting significant time on the pitch while abroad. Probably more necessary with the departure of Morrison, although Adkins seems happy to bleed in Cooper with Hector and Pearce as first choice. You'd imagine that Ferdinand would overtake the youngster, but it may take him a while to get to that stage of fitness.

Glenn Murray | Crystal Palace (loan)
Come the end of the window this was the signing that most people wanted, and is probably in the position of most pressing concern. With Pogrebnyak out injured we look horrifically lightweight up front, and even with narrow wins against Ipswich and Middlesbrough we're not scoring enough goals. A man who scored thirty goals last time he was in this division can only be a good man to have on the books. An exciting addition, even if it's only until January 1st, hopefully then we can add him on a permanent basis then.

Out

Royston Drenthe | Sheffield Wednesday (loan) 
Reading have been looking to offload Drenthe for a while now, and they've finally managed to get rid of him - even just temporarily. A loan until January, Adkins must be over the moon that he'll be away from the team for six months. With the added bonus that, hopefully, they'll take some of the wages.

Alex McCarthy | QPR
A move that was always going to happen, but they left it late in the window to get it done. Getting £3m for a Championship keeper going into their last year of contract seems to be a good deal for both sides; although there will definitely be those who wish we shold him last summer when his stock was at its peak. Still, with Federici as a highly capable Championship keeper I don't think it's too much of a loss. Especially as the Aussie seems much more comfortable with the ball at his feet - key in the Adkins' style.

Sean Morrison | Cardiff City
£4m for a defender that hasn't played particularly well since his injury last season is an incredible bit of business for the club. The only downside is that we didn't have many experienced centre backs to begin with, and almost no cover with the amount of injuries at the moment. Hector looks far more comfortable slotting into the back four, and looks like a decent replacement.

Adam Le Fondre | Cardiff City
Allegedly sold to pay the tax bill, although I'm sure that moving to play under his boyhood hero at a club with legitimate promotion hopes was a problem for the striker. We didn't have much choice, as he appears to be the only one who had interest around him at the time, and to get as much as we did in those situations is, again, testament to Hammond.

Daniel Carrico | Sevilla
Almost completely irrelevant. Fairly good fee considering what we brought him in for.

Jobi McAnuff | Free Transfer
Personally incredibly disappointed to see the skipper go, and reckon he had another year or two in him at this level. I know I'm sounding like a broken record, but with the injuries at the moment he definitely would've been beneficial to have. Plus by all accounts a great influence in the dressing room.

Kaspars Gorkss | Free Transfer
Was definitely on the downward curve, but nostalgia is a powerful force. May have been helpful to have around as a coach, or for his experience but sadly not up to this level any more.

Mikele Leigertwood | Free Transfer
If the final game of the season was anything to go by Mikele could've done a job for us this year, but the fact that he's injured and without a club probably shows that we made the right decision.

Wayne Bridge | Retired
Despite being in the team of the year for 2012-13 he only managed twelve games in a Reading shirt. There's the added bonus that his injury led us to discover the young starlet Jordan Obita at left back, who's apparently also warming to that position if Charles Watts is a reliable source - which he is. Bridge however; not a big loss.

Losing a couple of key guys from the dressing room, if not the team itself, at the beginning of the window definitely hurt us. However the only position that now seems to be below par is at left back, and hopefully we can use the emergency loan window to bring someone in - The international break is coming at the perfect time, and allows us to go out and find someone. After all, a temporary injury doesn't need a permanent solution. Murray is a terrific signing, although his 30 goal season is somewhat an anomaly within his career, and at 30 years of age he'll be one of the oldest in the squad. A loan deal is best for all parties, and if he proves himself during the next 6 months then securing a permanent deal will obviously look like good business.

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