Stoke City complete signing of Eidur Gudjohnsen
Former Chelsea and Barcelona Striker Eidur Gudjohnsen has completed his move to Stoke City. The deal was initially believed to be a loan one but eventually he signed on a permanent contract. Gudjohnsen finalised the deal on the brink of the transfer deadline; he was one of the 4 players that Stoke manager, Tony Pulis, added to his squad.
This is the 4th club in English Premier League for the front man. He has had successful stints with Bolton Wanderers, Chelsea and Tottenham Hotspur. He also played with distinction for Spanish champions, Barcelona and French club Monaco.
He was at Monaco when he decided to once again head to England on a one year contract. The amount of money exchanged has not been revealed, but it is believed that Stoke paid 2 million pounds for his services. Stoke manager Tony Pulis was visibly delighted to have completed the move and said that hard work in the transfer market had actually paid off.
It was quite a busy Tuesday for the Potters; Marc Wilson, Jermaine Pennant and Salif Diao also signed for the English Premier League club on the final day of transfer window.
Pulis believes that the latest signings will add great depth to his side, and Stoke will now be able to compete with the biggest names in English football much better than they did last season.
Pulis said that it has been a busy 3 months. He said, he and his scouts worked tirelessly to identify and recruit players from all across. He added it has not been an easy task but at the end of the day when you see the results it does look like the hard work has paid off.
He said that the club wants to move in the right direction, and the new signings is an indication that the long term plan is moving ahead. Pulis said that a little bit of quality can go a long way towards the progress of the club.
While talking about Gudjohnsen, Pulis said that he has seen him during his previous stints in England and also in Barcelona. He added that Eidur is a fantastic player and will be of great value to the club. Pulis went on to say that when one looks at the clubs he has played and the success he has managed to achieve, it speaks volumes about his ability, and he has no doubts that he will bring the same game to Stoke.
The Stoke manager said that the next 12 days will be a mini pre season for the new players, and they should be able to get involved in the club and get to know the way things work here. Pulis said that he expects to blood in the new recruits around the 13thof September; Stoke play Aston Villa on 13th of September.
The manager did not say if he will be starting Gudjohnsen in that all important match. However, he did say that it all depends on how comfortable and ready he is at that point. The manager at Britannia stadium said that Pennant is also one player he is very excited about. He said that Pennant has also played for big clubs like Liverpool and Arsenal in the Premier League and has good amount of understanding of the English game. He said that Jermaine Pennant is blessed with pace and, in the midfield, if he can combine well with Gudjohnsen it will be a great asset to the club.
Pulis went on to say that the club paid 1.5 million pounds for Wilson to Portsmouth and swapped 2 players in the deal. Still he believes that the deal is a lucrative one for Stoke and will benefit the club in the long run.
Tags: