Manchester United are tracking the progress of Reading teenager Danny Loader, who is rapidly building a reputation for himself as one of the best young talents playing outside the Premier League.
Loader, who came through the academy system at Reading, his home town club, made 29 appearances for the club last season in all competitions after breaking through to the first team, scoring his first senior goal against Middlesbrough in April.
The striker has been capped by England at every age group level up to under-20, and appeared for his country in the Toulon trophy in June. He was also part of the England squad that win the under-17 World Cup.
Reading do not want to sell one of their prized assets, but may find it hard to resist if United were to make a suitable offer for him. For their part, United may be willing to take a risk on Loader, given that the recruitment of Daniel James from another championship side, Swansea City, has been one of the success stories of their season so far.
Andy is an exiled English football fan living in Cyprus. He loves all sports but football is his abiding passion, and he still has dreams every now and then about scoring the winning goal in a Wembley Cup Final, even though his playing days are long gone. He follows most major leagues, across Europe at least, and has a favoured team in each. When he’s not watching, listening, reading or downloading podcasts about football, he spend his time worrying about his beloved Arsenal.