Exciting move for him.
Sligo Rovers have completed the signing of Patrick McClean from Waterford. The 21-year-old, the younger brother of West Brom and Republic of Ireland midfielder James, joins Sligo having helped Waterford to the First Division title in September.
McClean watched from the strands as Gerard Lyttle’s side lost their League of Ireland opener at home to Limerick on Saturday night.
The former Derry City man expressed his delight at signing on the dotted line for Rovers, outlining what he hopes to offer the side.
“I’m delighted to finally be here. It has taken some time to get everything signed off,” McClean told the club’s official website.
“I was at the game on Saturday. There was a great crowd there, over 3,000 which is brilliant for a League of Ireland side. I was treated so well and the people couldn’t do enough. I felt when the team conceded the goal, they lacked bite. That’s something I will try to bring.
“I’m here to play. The gaffer mentioned about the possibility of playing centre half or left back because of a couple of injuries in defence but I’m happy just to play.”
Lyttle, who had been keeping an eye on McClean’s progress with Waterford, praised his new signing.
MCCLEAN: "I was at the game on Saturday.
"There was a great crowd there, over 3,000 which is brilliant for a League of Ireland side.
"I was treated so well and the people couldn’t do enough. I'm looking forward to being out there playing ." #bitored pic.twitter.com/G8sJIsHPOH
— Sligo Rovers (@sligorovers) February 21, 2018
“We’re delighted to get the deal done” the former Cliftonville manager said.
“Patrick is aggressive, strong in a tackle, good in the air and was captaining Waterford for some matches at 20-years-old which will tell you about his mentality.
“He had been with Derry and the season with Waterford has brought him along further. I was trying to sign him at Cliftonville when he was at Derry and I’ve been tracking him since.
“Kevin Deery has been monitoring the situation in the last few weeks and I don’t think he fully settled down there. It’s a long way from Derry and that was a hindrance to him. We tried to get the deal done last week but it took time.
“He was in The Showgrounds last Saturday night to see what the club is about and I think it impressed him. He has made a sacrifice to come here this season – this is a good deal for the club for a player of his calibre.
LYTTLE: "Patrick is aggressive, strong in a tackle, good in the air. We also lacked height in the team. It's a big signing for us and we feel our options at centre half are very strong." #bitored pic.twitter.com/5u1jWQRYqe
— Sligo Rovers (@sligorovers) February 21, 2018
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