Reading FC favourite signs new deal
Tom McIntyre has agreed a new three-year contract to stay with the Royals
Never mind England beating Germany - Reading football fans are celebrating after the Royals announced one its most popular players had agreed a new deal.
22-year-old Tom McIntyre has signed a new three-year deal.
Berkshire born and bred, 22-year-old McIntyre has been with the club since the age of eight and rose through the ranks to the represent the first team, living the dream of every Reading fan by turning out for his boyhood club.
Last season he made 28 appearances for the senior team, becoming an integral member of the Reading squad.
Having represented the Royals at every age group, Tom finally got his first-team debut in December 2018, away at Rotherham United, shortly after his 20th birthday. Blood and guts: it’s the name of his game – he suffered a fractured skull just minutes into his first ever senior appearance, but played the entirety of a physical clash in South Yorkshire.
He increased his tally of matches in the 2019-20 campaign – in particular coming to the fore in Project Restart, making five starts in empty stadia during the season’s end in the summer months and keeping three consecutive clean-sheets.
And then in the 2020-21 season, he became a first-team regular: he registered 28 appearances and showed his versatility by occupying the left-back and central midfield positions on a few occasions, as well as his favoured centre-half spot.
Royals boss Veljko Paunovic said: “Tom was a young fan of Reading Football Club, he learned his trade within our Academy, he has established himself in his boyhood club’s first team and now he is a big part of its future. I’m delighted he has committed to three more years as a Royal.”
Chief Executive Dayong Pang added: “I am delighted that Tom has signed a new deal with Reading – he is an ambitious young man who has become an increasingly important member of the squad in the past few seasons. Tom is a local boy who is passionate about this club, and he is fantastic example to the future generations in our Academy.”