'Bid rejected' - Millwall swoop to land 'big player' wanted by Stoke City and Plymouth Argyle

Millwall have had an initial bid for Reading winger Femi Azeez rejected as the London club looks to swoop on the forward, who is a target for several Championship rivals in the final weeks of the summer window.

The Lions fell to a dramatic 3-2 defeat at the hands of Watford as the second tier got underway last weekend but bounced back to claim a 1-0 victory at Portsmouth in the Carabao Cup on Tuesday night. Even with the campaign underway, Neil Harris appears keen to add more options to his squad.

Transfer specialist Darren Witcoop took to social media platform X on Wednesday to confirm Millwall interest in Azeez and that a first bid had been rejected by Reading. He also namechecked Stoke City and Plymouth Argyle as interested parties.

Witcoop wrote: "Reading winger Femi Azeez is attracting strong Championship interest. Millwall and Stoke have seen initial bids rebuffed while Plymouth are also keen on Azeez."

Azeez was one of the Royals' standout stars in League One last season as the club battled points deductions to survive in the third tier. The 23-year-old registered eight goals and nine assists across the league campaign.

Praising the player after one standout outing against Exeter City last season, Reading boss Ruben Selles said: "His confidence, now, he just believes when he has a shot that he is going to score. He doesn’t even think about it. It’s just what confidence does for you.

"Because he’s kept going and hasn’t thrown the towel in, he has just got that belief about himself that when he shoots, he is going to score, or if he doesn’t score then the keeper is going to have to pull off one hell of a save to make sure he doesn’t. He is now the biggest player for Reading because he’ll get you goals and create you goals."

Reading remain under a financial gloom and could well be willing to leave the player leave for the right fee. Azeez was absent from Selles' side for the League One opener against Birmingham City last weekend and didn't feature in the cup defeat to Colchester United either.

Explaining the player's absence, Selles said: "Yesterday in training he felt something in his back and he went inside.

“It’s no problem, it’s not about one player. This squad is not about one player or even one manager. It is about how we do things together.”