Experienced winger arrives to bolster first team depth
Reading Football Club are pleased to announce that forward Junior Hoilett has put pen to paper on a one-year deal with the Royals this afternoon.
Just two games short of 400 appearances in English football, the experienced winger trained with Veljko Paunovic’s first team squad at Bearwood Park this morning and completed his medical and the paperwork on the contract this afternoon.
“Junior is a player with proven pedigree at the highest level, having competed in the Premier League with three different clubs,” Pauno said. “An experienced international, Junior will play an important role in helping our young players integrate within the first team squad and improve as professional players. On the pitch, his intelligence and maturity in the final third will make him an excellent addition to the squad we are looking to strengthen.”
Hoilett began his career in Blackburn, coming through the Rovers ranks to sign professional terms at Ewood Park ahead of two loan spells in Germany - at SC Paderborn and then in the Bundesliga with FC St Pauli.
Back in Lancashire, he scored on his full debut for Rovers in a 3-1 Carling Cup win over Gillingham and he opened his Premier League account in a 2-0 win over West Brom in January 2011.
In the summer of 2012, the Ontario-born forward signed for QPR and his first Rangers goal came against the Royals that September; he scored the opening goal in a five-goal Capital One Cup encounter with Brian McDermott’s Reading side at Loftus Road.
He has twice won promotion to the Premier League, helping QPR return to the top table of English football via a Play-off Final victory over Derby County in 2014 before winning automatic promotion with Cardiff City.
In his first full season as a Bluebird, Hoilett played in every game of City’s successful Championship campaign, scoring eleven goals across league and cup competition to secure Cardiff second spot with a draw at home to Reading on the final day of the season.
And Junior was back scoring top tier goals when he found the back of the net against West Ham, Watford and Wolves – the latter a stunning top corner strike that won the Premier League’s Goal of the Month accolade for November 2018.
He scored the most recent of his 51 goals in English football at Wycombe last season, before five years in the Welsh capital came to an end when his contract expired this summer. However, Hoilett certainly had a busy and successful summer…
For his native Canada, Junior scored twice in two comprehensive World Cup qualifying wins in June. Then, he was USA-bound to compete for CONCACAF Gold Cup honours with his country.
Finding the net against Haiti, the Canadians comfortably progressed from their group before beating Costa Rica in the quarter-finals – again Hoilett was on target in a 2-0 victory that set up a last four encounter with Mexico.
An injury time winner ended Canada’s hopes of reaching the final, but the 31-year-old had represented his country admirably, helping them reach the semi-final stages for the first time since 2007.
Now he begins a new chapter in blue and white hoops. Subject to receiving international clearance, he is eligible to make his Royals debut at Coventry City this weekend and will wear number 23.
Chief Executive Dayong Pang said, “We are delighted that we have been able to add to our attacking options with the arrival of a player with the vision to create opportunities and the proven ability to score them for Reading Football Club. I am excited to welcome him to the club and look forward to seeing him represent the Royals!”
