Paul Clement has a good record with youth, so he will be aiming to continue that with Reading.

The Royals will be hoping that he is able to continue giving opportunities to the promising youngsters like Jaap Stam did.

Reading have a squad that needs improvement in areas, so bringing through youngsters is a good way to do this in order to supplement acquisitions from other clubs which ensures the squad is competitive.

Clement is likely to make changes to the squad in the summer, so here are four players that could benefit from this with a move up the pecking order due to impressing with the youth teams as well as the first-team.

Richards has missed chunks of the season through injury, so he has been limited to 12 league appearances. However, he is likely to be fighting for a first-team place as the left-back next season.

He is competent at playing through a press and is composed on the ball with Stam's style playing a big part in that, so he could be part of an expansive style while also having the traditional defensive abilities to thrive in a more reactive approach.

Watson is another promising full-back at Reading, but he plays on the opposite side to Richards which means his opportunities are limited due to the imposing figure of Chris Gunter who has been a consistent player at the club.

He is yet to play for the first-team next season, and his contract runs out at the end of the season. However, he could be utilised as back-up for Gunter in order to ensure the Welsh full-back gets some rest during the season, and would be a cheap option due to his small contract demands.

Holmes has only made one appearance for the first-team this season, but it was a start against Bolton at the beginning of March. He was impressive and helped the Royals come away with a 1-1 draw.

At 18-years-old, his development is impressive and he could play a role as depth in that position whenever Reading need someone to fill in for an injured or suspended player. This level clearly doesn't faze him, so he should be given opportunities by Clement next season.

Smith has been given opportunities at different parts of the season, but the lack of consistency hasn't allowed him to properly settle in the first-team, although he did manage to score against Norwich.

Clement has only given him one start so far, which was in the 3-0 defeat to Aston Villa where David Edwards' early red card ended it as a contest.

The Royals have a variety of options in the forward areas, but none have sufficiently impressed, so Smith could make it his own next season.