Manchester City have announced the signing of midfielder Jack Rodwell from Everton for a fee reported to be in the region of £12million.
21-year old, Rodwell was delighted to accept Roberto Mancini’s offer and become the Italian’s first signing of the summer since wrestling the Premier League title away from Old Trafford last May;”Man City are a massive club, the league champions, so it’s a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. It’s a dream come true” Rodwell said.
Rodwell, who joined Everton as a seven year old then worked his way through the ranks to become a full England international whilst still at Goodison Park, knows that he will now have much stiffer competition for a first team place than he ever did at Everton but he is excited by the prospect of joining up with Mancini’s stellar squad.”Obviously I knew the squad is immense with talent here but I believe in my ability. I’ve just got to work my way into the manager’s plans and hopefully things will go well” he said.
Rodwell, who made his full England debut last year, missed much of the 2011-12 season through injury and having managed only 17 games last year he knows that he will have to work on his fitness to make an impression at the Etihad. “The hard work starts today as I start to help contribute to the club winning more silverware. The season has started really well with the Community Shield win” Rodwell said, having watched his new side defeat Chelsea 3-2 in the Community Shield .
Manchester City begin the defence of their Premier League title at home to Southampton on Sunday and whilst, given the strength in depth at City, Rodwell seems unlikely to feature too often this season, he is certainly one to watch for the future. If Mancini can sign one or two more young players with the quality and potential of Rodwell then he could certainly start to build a dynasty in the blue half of Manchester.
The one disappointment form last season for City was the Champions League. The exited the competition at the group stage and will be determined to do a far better this time around. Don’t for get to head over to Betfair for more info on champions league this season.
