Reading centre-back Michael Hector has been linked with a move back to Chelsea this week, and this is good news for young centre back Jake Cooper.

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Hector, a Jamaican international defender, joined the reigning Premier League Champions on transfer deadline day, before being immediately loaned back to the Championship club, for the rest of the season.

A few months later, Steve Clarke revealed that Chelsea would have the option of bringing him back early to Stamford Bridge, although they'd have to pay compensation.

The Blues, after a horrible start to their season, are now considering bringing him back to help beef up their defence, something that has divided opinion amongst Royals fans.

I personally think this isn't necessarily bad news, as we have a wealth of talent at centre half, from the pedigree Anton Ferdinand to the prodigy Pierce Sweeney, though cover would be welcome.

However, I think the real winner in this situation would be Jake Cooper, who's looking to be one of our finest up and coming youngsters.

I think Cooper is ready to play in the first team, and on plenty of occasions has shown himself to be a fine defender. In fact I think his only poor game has been Birmingham away last season, though unfortunately for him that game was lost 6-1.

In the League Cup, he completely outplayed in-form striker Romelu Lukaku, proving once more that he has a brilliant football brain. If you haven't noticed already, he's pretty tall as well, which is always important for a centre back, as well as having a left foot, which makes him perfect for slotting into that left centre back role.

If anything I think Hector's exit may be more of a help than a hindrance for Reading, in that it may see the development of one of our own young stars (who, on current form, may be even better than Hector) rather than someone else's.

Reading fans... What do you make of this article? Do you want Hector to go back to Chelsea? Is he a vital part of your squad? Is Cooper already better than him, and should he be given more of a chance? Let us know in the comments below!