Reading Defender In Championship Switch?

Reading defender Nesta Guinness-Walker has attracted the interest of Championship duo West Bromwich Albion and Blackburn Rovers, ahead of a possible summer move according to Pete O’Rourke from Football Insider.

The 23-year-old is one of four players that have been transfer listed by the cash-strapped League One side and looks destined to return to the Championship this summer, but his next destination is yet to be decided.

Who is Nesta Guinness-Walker?

The left-back was playing Non-League football as recently as 2019, starring for the Met. Police, before being picked up by AFC Wimbledon on a free transfer. He made just under 100 first-team appearances for the club in a three-year spell, before joining Reading on another free transfer last summer.

A strong start

Following the club’s relegation to League One, it was expected that Ruben Selles’ side would find it difficult to adapt. This also seemed the case after their opening day defeat to Peterborough. The club built hope with a thumping 4-0 cup win against Millwall but slipped to another 1-0 loss to Port Vale, a side that lost 7-0 the week prior.

However, the side have since won back-to-back league games, keeping two successive clean sheets in the process. An own goal helped the club overcome Cheltenham before a brace from Kelvin Ehibhatiomhan saw the club beat an unbeaten Stevenage and sit 13th in the latest standings.

What’s been said?

According to journalist Pete O’Rourke, the Championship duo are aiming to take advantage of Reading’s squad update and land the full-back on a free transfer.

Writer’s View

Personally, I’m not entirely convinced that Guinness-Walker would be a starter for either Blackburn or West Bromwich Albion. This is simply down to the players potentially ahead of him, such as Harry Pickering (Blackburn) and Conor Townsend (West Bromwich Albion).

However, he did feature 28 times in the Championship last season, contributing to two further assists for the club. Also, despite being ‘transfer listed’, he is still match fit and would be eligible to feature from the off if he was to move in the coming days.