Chris Gunter and Garath McCleary have been involved in Reading's first-team training for the first time this season following Mark Bowen's appointment as the club's new manager, according to Berkshire Live journalist Jonathan Low.

The experienced duo had been frozen out of the first-team picture by former manager Jose Gomes, but the Portuguese's departure from the club last week has opened the door to their playing return.

Gomes was dismissed by the Royals hierarchy after overseeing a disappointing start to the season where Reading had won just two of their first 11 league matches to leave them sitting third from bottom in the Championship table.

The 49-year-old exiled Gunter and McCleary from first-team training over the summer when he told the pair to find new clubs, but the two players remained at the Madejski Stadium following the transfer window and now could play a part this campaign.

Berkshire Live journalist Jonathan Low shared the news via his Twitter account, while he also added that Sam Baldock was involved in training despite having not made an appearance so far this season either.

Gunter has made almost 300 appearances for the Royals since joining the club in 2012, while McCleary has made just shy of 250 appearances since his switch in the same summer.

The Verdict

It makes sense for Bowen to allow Gunter and McCleary to return to training. It was Gomes' decision to leave out the pair and they both deserve to start on a clean slate following Bowen's appointment.

These are two players who know the club extremely well having now spent seven years in Berkshire, and the squad will surely benefit from their experience as they aim to overcome this challenging period.

Having said this, I don't think Gunter and McCleary are at the level required to start every week in the Championship. Bowen does have much better options at his disposal within the squad, but it will ultimately not do any harm to have the duo training with the squad.

It will be interesting to see which changes Bowen decides to make to the side for the upcoming Barnsley match, and whether he includes either Gunter or McCleary in the match-day squad.

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