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Stoke City old boy Tom Ince ‘in advanced talks’ about Championship return
Tom Ince is reportedly in advanced talks with Watford as he nears an exit from crisis club Reading.
Ince, who joined Reading last summer after half-a-season on loan from Stoke City, still has two years to run on his contract but it is believed to include a relatively low relegation release clause.
Reading Today claims Watford have activated that clause and put a three-year deal on the table for the 31-year-old although The Athletic suggests negotiations are ongoing over a fee. Valerien Ismael has taken over at Vicarage Road and will likely be well backed following the £30m sale of Joao Pedro to Brighton.
Owner Gino Pozzo said at a recent Q&A with fans: “(The Joao Pedro money) is part of the cash flow so of course we are selling players to generate the cash flow and support the operation. The good news now is we have found a reduction in the salary, and the salary now is constantly going down as the players we had coming down from the Premier League are sold or the contract is expiring.
“We are coming to a lower cost. The club is not generating debt in operation and the sale of players is helping the ones that were generated during Covid.”
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It is five years since Ince was brought to Stoke from Huddersfield Town for £10m by Gary Rowett, who – as Derby manager – had sold him to Huddersfield for a similar price a year previously.
He was the main threat in attack under Rowett but fell foul of Nathan Jones’s diamond system and couldn’t find game-changing form consistently enough under Michael O’Neill. Ironically he left to Jones again at Luton on loan before finding a new home at Reading, where he has largely played under the management of his dad Paul Ince.
But Reading have had difficulties off the pitch, including a six-point penalty for failing to follow an EFL-approved business plan which ultimately meant relegation. In the last few days they have been charged by the EFL for paying wages late in October, November and April.
Chief executive Dayong Pang said in a letter to staff seen by the Reading Chronicle: “I fully appreciate that – due to complex and unforeseen cashflow issues we are tackling – staff payroll has unfortunately been impacted on a couple of these occasions. This is unacceptable and I would like to personally reassure you that wages will be satisfied in full, as normal, come the end of this month and going forward.”
The club remains without a manager and head of scouting Jared Dublin is hoping to join Stoke’s back room team if he can secure the necessary work permit.
Women’s team manager Kelly Chambers has left following their relegation from the Women’s Super League and subsequent confirmation the team will be going part-time.
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