76-year-old eyeing Reading FC takeover to end Dai Yongge nightmare | OneFootball

The club has been on sale for over year now.

Former Reading chairman Roger Smee is considering making a last-ditch attempt to rescue the club from the ownership of Dai Yongge, as per City AM.

The Reading ownership saga is one that has dragged on for a long time now, and certainly much longer than any of those associated with the club would have wanted it to.

A number of deals have been in the works since Yongge put the club up for sale over a year ago, but none of them have come through and given the Royals supporters what they are most hoping for: the Chinese businessman out of their club.

A sinking decline down to the third tier, combined with some working standards that are way below the usual norm of a professional football club, for both on and off the pitch matters, has left Reading in a pretty poor state, but it is ready to be regenerated by someone new, someone fresh.

A new name has entered the discussion around the club's sale, although it will be a very familiar one to the club's fanbase.

Roger Smee in talks over potential Reading rescue package

Smee, the ex-chairman of the Royals, is reported to be in talks with the club over a potential rescue package, according to City AM.

The 76-year-old was at the head of Reading until 1990, when the club hit financial troubles and he sold to John Madjeski. Now, his role from nearly 35 years ago could be reversed, with him looking at being the one to save the Royals this time.

Smee played for the Berkshire side in the 1960s and 70s before becoming involved with Reading at the boardroom level. He's most loved in the area for helping to put a stop to Robert Maxwell's plans to merge the team with Oxford United in the 1980s.

He is estimated to have a current net worth of £76 million, according to Company Check.

In October, Reading announced that they were in exclusive negotiations with an unnamed buyer, whose identity is still unknown. Getting the club out of Yongge's hands has proved difficult because of the number of outstanding loans that he has which are secured against the Royals' stadium, as per City AM.

Former Newcastle United owner Mike Ashley was previously said to be interested in taking ownership of the Select Car Leasing Stadium, as per The Sun, but no move ever materialised.

Another previous English football club owner, Rob Couhig, was interested in getting involved with the club, except, unlike Ashley, he wanted to take ownership of the whole thing rather than just the ground, according to City AM.

His attempt to buy the League One side fell through in September after a £25 million sale to the American was agreed.

Roger Smee return could be a real boost for Reading

The main thing that would obviously need to be considered when looking at any sale of the club is whether the potential next owner has the finances to be able to fund the club properly.

The Royals have been able to survive without this for a while, which has led to things like players having to eat microwave meals, no heating at the stadium for staff, overnight stays being scrapped - all according to The Athletic. Despite what they have been able to do under the current ownership, a repeat can't be allowed to happen again.

But let's forget the monetary side of it for a second though; having a former chairman who did the right thing for the club in the past back at the helm would be such a relief for Reading's supporters and the players. We know that Smee cares for the club and would try to do what is right for it. That alone makes him an encouraging option.