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A nightmare six months for Keown at Championship side Leicester City came to an end last Thursday when the Foxes agreed to terminate the ex-England defender's contract.
Having snubbed a potential move to Reading last summer to make the disastourous move to Leicester, Keown is keen to make up for lost time at the Madejski Stadium.
Speaking to the Reading Evening Post the veteran centre-back admitted that things just didn't work out for him at the Walkers' Stadium.
"The reason I went to Leicester was because I wanted to further my career in the game and I was told I would do some coaching. Things didn't work out, though, and I never did any," he said.
Keown, who won a Premiership medal with Arsenal last season, is hoping to help Reading to promotion to the top flight for the first time in their history.
Although the Royals sit nine points adrift of leaders Ipswich, the centre-back believes that automatic promotion is not beyond Steve Coppell's off-form team.
"Reading have got a real chance. They could go up automatically. This is a critical part of the season now and a lot is about belief. Hopefully I can help instil some of that," he added.
"Every team is capable of beating the other. You really can't worry about your results too much. You need to get on and look forward and hopefully there's a bright future for Reading."
Oxford-born Keown is expected to make his Royals debut this weekend against Plymouth at the Madejski Stadium. It is thought that Steve Coppell will drop Senegalese centre-back Ibrahima Sonko to accommodate the ex-England man.
Yet Reading's recent problems have not lied at the back. Coppell will be hoping that the likes of Nicky Forster and Les Ferdinand can find the net for Reading, as the Royals have managed to score just once in the league in 2005.