Reports are surfacing that Reading captain and fans favourite Jem Karacan is set to leave the club after rejecting a pay-as-you-play deal and is on the verge of making a move to his boyhood club, Galatasaray.
Karacan began his dream of becoming a professional footballer at the now defunct Wimbledon. Shortly after he left them, he was spotted by a Reading scout while on trial at Manchester United and signed for the Berkshire club where he has spent the rest of his career there.
After signing a professional contract, Bournemouth spotted him and signed him loan. Initially only for a month, then extended to January 2008. He then made another loan move in the same season to Millwall and lasted until the end of the 2007/08 campaign and then returning to his parent club, Reading.
The next few years were a ‘gem’ for the Turkish playmaker, making his debut and scoring against Luton Town in a League Cup match in August 2008. From there, he started to make a name for himself and become a fans favourite at Reading. He finally got a breakthrough into the first team towards Christmas time and with his performances came a new 2 and a half year deal.
He made his 100th appearance in the blue and white shirt in August 2011 against Barnsley, but from there on in, his playing time was limited after being plagued with injuries and as a result of that he only made 55 more appearances in the next four years. He was made captain and in this time, showed fighting spirit by working hard after suffering the injuries, however after starting the 2013/14 season with two goals at Watford, a month later against Leeds he received another horrific injury and was then subsequently out for up to 9 months. He scored his last Reading goal at the end of last season against Watford.
If he does make the move to Turkey it will be a great move for him. Galatasaray will surely offer him a lucrative salary and out of that he will get to play in Turkey and for the club he has supported all his life. Only time will tell whether there is real substance to these reports.
