Reading FC have been linked with a summer transfer move for Maidenhead United attacker Reece Smith.
The Royals have been under a transfer embargo for several seasons under owner Dai Yongge which is expected to be lifted if a takeover is completed before the summer window opens.
As a result, Reading have been limited to only signing free agents and loan players and are likely to venture into the free market once again to help build their squad for next season.
According to Football League World, the Royals are keen on signing Maidenhead United player Smith on a free transfer at the end of the season.
The fellow Berkshire side play their football in the fifth tier of English football in the National League and are currently 22nd in the table.
22-year-old Smith has featured for Maidenhead mainly as a left winger, but has also been deployed as a central attacking midfielder and has scored six goals and collected five assists this season.
Noel Hunt’s team currently sit just outside the play-off places in League One, but face an uncertain future with the future of the club still unresolved and several first team players set to be out of contact at the end of the campaign.
Reading have turned to non-league sides in the transfer market several times in recent years, including Andy Rinomhota who was signed from AFC Porchester and went on to make 139 appearances for the Royals and won the player of the season award in the 2018/19 season.
