Reading have bid turned down for Brighton striker?

Reading have had a bid turned down for Brighton striker Craig Mackail-Smith, according to several reports.

Brian McDermott has been a long-term admirer of the Scotland international and has previously tried to sign him when he was at Peterborough, but did not have the financial means to complete a deal.

Twitter account ‘North Stand Chat’ tweeted that: We hear from a very good source that #readingfc HAVE approached #bhafc for the services of @12CMS12. Initial offer has been declined. The reliability of this source is unknown but has been previously known to have some inside knowledge.

They also reported that the money offered was around £3.5, with Simon Church going in the opposite direction as a part of the deal. However, Brighton are reluctant to sell the 27-year old, who has scored seven goals this season.

Reading have already signed two strikers in this current window, in Karl Sheppard and Jason Roberts. The former Blackburn striker had a great start to his Royals career on Saturday, as he scored the only goal in the 1-0 win against Bristol City.