Federici signed for Reading in January 2005 on non-contract terms, and was quickly loaned out to Maidenhead. He spent the second half of the 2005–06 season on loan at Carshalton Athletic. Federici signed his first professional contract for Reading in the summer of 2006, and in a subsequent pre-season friendly match on 15 July, scored the only goal of the game against Bromley, having been played as a makeshift striker. He joined Bristol City on a loan deal on 29 August 2006, but was recalled on 27 October without making a first team appearance.