Just over a fortnight until the start of Euro 2024, a month-long European football festival for 24 countries.
Hosted by 1996 winners Germany, the eyes of the football continent will be on Munich on June 14 as Scotland face the hosts.
Set the Reading Chronicle a challenge to find a link to the Royals for each country taking part in the tournament.
Group A:
Germany- Uwe Hartenberger
Prolific German striker Hartenberger arrived under Mark McGhee in 1993 and became an instant hit, scoring on his debut against Swansea City. He ended up scoring five goals in 29 games before returning home in 1995.
Scotland-Steve Clarke
The 60-year-old was an international for Scotland while becoming a legend at Chelsea, but has also proven to be an impressive coach. He took Reading to the FA Cup semi-final, has since worked at Kilmarnock and taken them to Europe before taking charge of his country. One of the most successful managers in Scotland’s history, Clarke has taken him to Euro 2020 and 2024.
Hungary- Peter Mate
Not many Reading players have a 100 percent scoring record for the club, but former Hungary Under-21 international Mate made one appearance and scored one goal against Darlington. An injury hampered his time with the Royals, but the 39-year-old enjoyed a long career until 2015.
Switzerland – Dom Ballard captain
An incredibly niche link with Switzerland, Reading loanee Dom Ballard captained England Under-19s for the first time in September, scoring against the Swiss in a 4-2 win.
Group B:
Spain- Alex Fernandez
Spanish midfielder Fernandez was a bit of a cult favorite when he was on loan at Reading in 2015/16, often playing for his country across all age groups up to Under-21. The 31-year-old, formerly of Real Madrid, has scored once in ten games for Reading but has spent the last six years at Cadiz.
Croatia-Alen Halilovic
The 27-year-old Halilovic was once compared to Lionel Messi, playing for giants such as Barcelona, AC Milan and Dinamo Zagreb. The attacking midfielder first moved to Britain with Birmingham City in 2020 and made just 12 appearances for the Royals before returning to Croatia. With 10 international matches to his name and still in his ‘top years’, Halilovic is currently playing in the Netherlands.
Italy- Vito Mannone
Reading spent £1million on the former Arsenal and Sunderland goalkeeper in 2017 and made just 47 appearances in three seasons. The 36-year-old will leave for America in 2019 and has continued to play at the highest level in France since last season with Monaco, Lorient and Lille. He earned seven caps for Italy Under-21 from 2009 to 2010.
Albania-Chris Gunter record
Chris Gunter, the full-back with more than 300 appearances for Reading, earned his 93rd Wales cap in a 1-0 defeat to Albania in 2018, making him his country’s most capped player. He retired in 2022 with 109 international matches.
Group C:
Slovenia- Jure Travner
Former Slovenian Under-21 international Travner is a legend at Celje, the current league champions, with more than 250 club appearances in two stints. With spells in Bulgaria, Scotland and Azerbaijan, the full-back made one appearance for Reading in 2015.
Denmark- Paul Mukairu (Copenhagen)
In a bit of a deception for Denmark, 24-year-old winger Mukairu was loaned to Reading from Danish giants FC Copenhagen last season. The Nigerian played three times for the Royals last season and scored three times.
Serbia-Dejan Tetek
Born in Oxfordshire and a former England under-18 international, 21-year-old Tetek rose through the Royals Academy and made 21 appearances. Although he impressed under compatriot Veljko Paunovic, the midfielder earned five Under-21 caps for Serbia.
England – Neil Webb
Born and raised in Reading, the son of Biscuitmen legend Douggie, Webb made almost 100 appearances for his boyhood club before enjoying a successful top-flight career with the likes of Manchester United and Nottingham Forest. The midfielder earned 26 caps for England, playing in Euro 88 and Euro 92, as well as the Italia 90 World Cup.
Group D:
Poland-Gregorz Raziak
Polish striker Raziak began a six-year spell in England in 2004 and enjoyed an international career playing for the likes of Derby County, Tottenham and Southampton. He finished his British spell at Berkshire scoring nine goals in 30 appearances.
Netherlands- Nathan Ake
Stylish defender Aké enjoyed a very short loan spell at Reading from Chelsea in 2015, making five appearances in April. Since then, the 29-year-old has won four Premier League titles, an FA Cup, an EFL Cup, a Champions League and a Club World Cup in a stellar career with Manchester City.
Austria – Preseason 2018/19
From what I understand, Reading are yet to bring in an Austrian, so the vague link of a short pre-season tour in 2018/19 will have to suffice. Paul Clement took his side to the continent for friendlies with Besiktas and Rubin Kazan, with both ending in draws. Current striker Sam Smith, a youngster on the tour, and Marc McNulty scored the 2-2 draw against the Turkish giants, while Kazan kept the Royals at 0-0.
France-Naby Sarr
After proving popular with Charlton and Huddersfield Town fans, supporters were looking forward to seeing centre-back Naby Sarr in action. After waiting weeks to officially register, the former France Under-21 international scored on his debut for Millwall. 24 appearances and a relegation later, the 30-year-old activated a clause in his contract and left for Qatar.
Group E:
Belgium- Roeselare
A very relevant link: the 100-year-old KSV Roeselare was bought by the current Reading owner Dai Yongge. Just three years later, after relegation to the third tier, the historic club was declared bankrupt and liquidated. Tom Holmes played eleven games for them on loan from Reading in the season before their tragic demise.
Slovakia- Ryan Bertrand 2016
Former popular loanee Bertrand, who finished third in the 2009/10 Player of the Season poll, made his first start of the 2016 European Championship in a 0-0 draw against Slovakia.
Romania- George Puscas
When the club signed in 2019, the former Inter Milan striker lived up to great expectations. With a respectable 14 in his debut campaign, including the fastest hat-trick in the history of the championship, things never really took off and the international has been passed over by three Italian clubs since 2022.
Ukraine – Andy Carroll 2012
‘AC’ scored his only tournament goal for England in a 3-2 win over Sweden at the 2012 European Championship, held in Kiev.
Group F:
Turkey-Jem Karacan
Combative midfielder Karacan, a legend who rose through the ranks to get the club back into the Premier League, played almost 200 games despite suffering multiple long-term injuries. The Turkish youth international, who played for Galatasaray, Bolton and Millwall, retired last year at the age of just 34.
Georgia-Zerab Khiznalvili
The no-nonsense centre-back left his native Georgia in 2001 for a decade in Britain, playing for Dundee, Rangers, Blackburn Rovers and Newcastle United before being loaned out to Reading in 2009/10. He impressed so much that he returned for 2010/11 and featured in the Championship play-off final at Wembley. Now 42, he is now a coach in the Georgia national team.
Portugal – Daniel Carico
Highly rated Portuguese defender Carrico cost Premier League Reading just £750,000 in January 2013. When he was off, the 35-year-old played just 87 minutes as a Royal before moving on to Spanish giants Sevilla. Four Europa League titles later and he remains one of the most decorated former Royals of all time.
Czech Republic – Marek Matějovský
A popular figure in his native Czech Republic, Matějovský made almost 200 appearances for Sparta Prague, being a classy player in more than 50 appearances for the club. Often described as possibly too talented for his teammates to get the best out of him, the creative midfielder was a regular at the 2008 Euros when he was still a Royal.