Cardiff City are bracing for a busy end to the January transfer window, following the loan acquisition of Will Alves from Leicester City.
The 19-year-old joins the club on a deal till the end of the season, and has previous experience of working under manager Omer Riza, having played under him in the England youth setup.
Following the signing, Riza was full of praise for Alves:
“Will is very powerful,” Riza said.
“He’s quick and has a great attitude,”
“He’s a hungry player, has an aggression to run at players and get beyond the opposition.”
Alves becomes the bluebirds third arrival of this window, following the signings of striker Yousef Salech from Swedish club Sirius, and Sivert Mannsverk on loan from Ajax.
Upon signing, Alves spoke about his desire to challenge himself:
“I’m buzzing and really excited,” Alves said.
“It’s a big club to come to and I’m really excited for the challenge ahead,”
“I’m a creative player and I like to cause the opposition problems,”
“This is an important experience for me, and I want to kick on now.”
While it has been a busy day in the Welsh capital in terms of incomings, today has also seen some outgoings from the club.
Michael Reindorf had his move hijacked at the last minute. It seemed as though he would be moving to Notts County, however Bristol Rovers have pipped County to his signature.
This adds to the recent departures of Manolis Siopis, who has returned to Greece to sign for Panathinaikos and Kion Etete, who has joined Bolton Wanderers on loan.
These last few hours will prove to be busy for the Bluebirds, Omer Riza did hint that he wanted one or two players before tonight’s deadline.
He’s already got one, we will have to wait and see if he gets the second that he asked for.