Chelsea’s Danny Drinkwater and Baba Rahman may have been the two most eye-catching additions at the Select Car Leasing Stadium this summer, but Scott Dann may prove to be the most useful.
He comes into a Reading side that has failed to keep a clean sheet in any of their opening five league games of the season, conceding three or more goals in three of these Championship matches and leaking 13 in total.
This is a disappointing record for a team that conceded just one goal in their first seven league games during the last campaign and if they fail to improve on their current defensive record, they will never be able to climb up the table.
The good news for Reading fans is the fact we finally have a senior left-back at our disposal in Rahman and barring any injury to him on international duty with Ghana, he could potentially be in line for his debut against Queens Park Rangers at the weekend.
A left-back has been sorely needed all summer following Omar Richards’ departure, so this addition has been vital and his fitness could prove to be vital this year.
I’m not sure many of us can bare to see square pegs in round holes with Andy Yiadom or Tom McIntyre, when the latter recovers, on the left-hand side.
In the centre though, a signing was also important following McIntyre’s injury and although many may have wanted a pacier option to be a real alternative to Michael Morrison and Tom Holmes, a man of Scott Dann’s ability and experience will be welcomed and he could have a Morrison-esque impact.
I remember that sunny August day in July 2019 when the former Birmingham City man put pen to paper on a two-year deal.
The Royals were also strongly linked with Matt Miazga at the time and people thought the club were about to announce him when the teaser on the club’s Twitter account appeared.
But it proved to be Morrison, much to the initial disappointment of some fans who would have preferred it to be Miazga.
How wrong we all were to be disappointed, because the 33-year-old was outstanding for the Royals in his first two seasons in Berkshire.
His performances in the present day will be debated – but no one can deny the impact he initially made and it could now be Dann’s turn to level up what has been a shoddy backline so far this season.
Like Morrison, the 34-year-old will be seen as a solid but not spectacular signing and many people will pick out his age as a drawback of this signing.
But with age comes experience – and this is why he could potentially be the signing of the summer with our failure to bring in a forward.
The striker issue will no doubt be talked about in the future – but at a time when positivity is at a premium – the signing of Dann is one good thing we can take from a mixed summer transfer window.
By Adam Jones
