“Over the moon” Joleon Lescott completes signing
Last night the left-sided centre-half Mark Hughes has been craving all Summer was finally confirmed as a City player. The 27 year-old England international signed a five-year deal, which is standard for deals of this size.
After agreement with Everton was confirmed on Sunday, there was a delay which appeared similar to that in the Adebayor deal. It’s part of modern football at this level that agents, player representatives, dealmakers – call them what you will, all strive hard to maximise their cut at this time. A frustrating and messy business for all the main parties, but one that doesn’t usually stop a deal going through as that would leave such people with nothing. After seeing the sums made by Kia Joorabchian, and the wealth of City’s owners, it would hardly be surprising if people were trying to squeeze as much out of the club as possible.
Lescott will today take part in his first training session with the club. It will be interesting to see if he makes his debut in the Carling Cup game at Crystal Palace on Thursday night, or against Portsmouth on Sunday. In the past, Hughes has had few qualms about putting players in at the deep end, and with speculation about Richard Dunne’s future at the club intensifying, I don’t think we’ll have to wait long to see Lescott in a City shirt.
With the signing of Sylvinho, there seems little doubt that Lescott will be taking up his strongest position as left-sided centre-back. The right-footed Nedum Onuoha ought to be battling Kolo Toure for a place, though Nedum showed himself to be more than capable on the left in the second half of last season.
On completion of the deal, Mark Hughes said:
“I am absolutely delighted to welcome Joleon to Manchester City. He is an England international who has proved his Premier League ability during his time at Everton.”
“In bringing Joleon to the Club I feel we have recruited a defender of the very highest quality. He can play in a number of defensive positions, and I’m positive he will make a significant impact for us.”
“I’m over the moon to get the move completed, and I’m looking forward to training with the lads as I’ve not trained for a few days.”
“I know some of the lads already – I’m close friends with Shaun, we’ve played against each other since we were 16 or 17. The way this club is moving on, I’m really looking forward to being a part of that.”