Blackman Completes Derby Move

06 January 2016
By Hob Nob Anyone?

Nick Blackman has completed his move to Championship side Derby County. The official transfer fee is, as usual with Reading FC, undisclosed, but is expected to be initially 2.5 million rising to 3 million. Blackman will be expected to face Reading next Tuesday night when Reading travel to high-flying Derby for their League encounter.

Reading FC and Nick Blackman were unable to agree a new contract after recent negotiations. With no new contract in place, Blackman was due to leave the club in the summer and would have left on a free transfer. It appears that Derby County were willing to match Blackman's demands following his recent run of good form, and also offered excellent money to Reading to secure the transfer. Blackman's agent has done very well for the player and he signs a contract to keep him at Derby until the Summer of 2019.

It will be interesting to see what moves Reading make in the transfer market now to replace Blackman. In the past big incoming transfer fees seem to have found their way into a black hole, with the squad weakened as a result. However, this time the club's official statement indicates that the money will be made available to manager Brian McDermott to source new players:

"The club made extensive efforts to negotiate a new contract with Nick over the course of the last four or five months but no conclusion was forthcoming, so with his current deal due to expire this summer we believe this move is the right thing for all parties concerned.

This deal will also allow us the chance to potentially re-invest in the first team this month, helping the manager to bolster his squad should the right opportunities arise during the transfer window."

• See Also: Blackman To Join Derby In 3 Million Deal
• See Also: Blackman - Fans Think Royals Should Cash In

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