Reading loanee Tom Dele-Bashiru admitted that he wanted to fight for his place in Watford's first team this season but felt it was probably in his best interests to go out on loan last summer, speaking to the Watford Observer.

The 22-year-old arrived as the Royals' first signing of the summer transfer window after being hampered by their embargo, restrictions that limited them to loanees and free agents as they looked to strengthen their squad for the 2021/22 campaign.

They did this with Dele-Bashiru's arrival, an addition that was important with Alfa Semedo's departure leaving the club with a lack of depth in the middle of the park.

And he was a regular for the Royals during the latter stages of 2020/21, often filling in as a winger in the absence of others as well as playing in the middle of the park in his more natural position.

The midfielder has been utilised slightly less since then with the likes of Andy Rinomhota, Josh Laurent and Danny Drinkwater all starting regularly with the Berkshire outfit finding themselves with more wide options after the arrival of Tom Ince and return of Ovie Ejaria.

Still, Dele-Bashiru has made 31 league appearances this season and has probably played more regularly than he would have done at Vicarage Road in the top flight, the key reason behind his move to the Select Car Leasing Stadium as he spoke candidly to the Watford Observer.

He said: "To be honest, I did want to push for my place but in the back of my mind, I also knew that a loan would probably be the best option because I need regular game time.

"Coming back off an ACL injury, another season sitting on the bench wasn't going to do me much good, so I needed to go out there and go and play because I needed as many minutes as I could get under my belt.

"I think I'm capable of performing in the Premier League, I just obviously needed the experience to play here in the Championship and learn about men's football as I've not really played many seasons of men's football yet."

The Verdict:

Dele-Bashiru has been a useful asset for the Royals this term, certainly in terms of his versatility with the 22-year-old stepping up at times to be a genuine threat out wide.

He has proven to be a bigger asset going forward than he is defensively - but the fact he can play in a holding role and showed this away at Fulham last year is a promising sign and it's definitely a reason for optimism for his parent club.

The midfielder has also seemed to recover well from his anterior cruciate ligament setback despite the injury crisis at the Select Car Leasing Stadium this term, managing to take opportunities when other players have been unavailable.

However, the latter stages of his spell at the club may end up spoiling his time in Berkshire to an extent - because he isn't playing anywhere near enough football at this stage and that may stifle his development.

But with Rinomhota out and Ince unavailable tonight, there's a real chance for him to make his mark against Stoke City if he forces his way into the lineup ahead of Junior Hoilett and if he can impress, it wouldn't be a surprise to see him remain in the first 11.