Club News

Albion sign Sinclair

Winger joins on season-long loan with view to permanent move

ALBION have boosted their attacking options by signing Manchester City winger Scott Sinclair on a season-long loan with a view to a permanent deal

The 24-year-old today completed his move after passing a medical and will wear the No.10 shirt.

Sinclair arrives with a wealth of Barclays Premier League experience having also played for Chelsea, Swansea and Wigan in the top flight.

He is a player Steve Clarke knows well having seen him come through the ranks at Stamford Bridge.

“Scott understands he needs to play football and it will be good to work with him again,” said the Baggies boss.

“We’re delighted he feels this is the right club for him at this stage of his career.

“He is the type of player we were missing from the squad.

“He is a pure winger, who is quick, direct and scores goals – he has proven that over his career.

“He can play off the right or left and improves our attacking options.

“I know him well and he is a good person, who I know is 100 per cent committed to our cause.

“He is frustrated he did not get the chances to play at Man City last season and hopefully he will take those frustrations out on Premier League defenders this season.”

Sinclair has played for England from Under-17s to Under-21s level and represented Team GB at last summer’s Olympics.

He is renowned for his pace and trickery and has a reputation for scoring individual goals.

Sporting & Technical Director (Designate) Richard Garlick added: “Scott is the winger we ear-marked right at the start of the transfer window.

“He has had a frustrating time at Manchester City but you cannot doubt his quality in terms of what he has done in the past.

“He has a got a full pre-season under his belt with City and he is young, he is hungry and wants to play.

“He likes the club, the set-up, players and head coach.

“Hopefully he will bring a wow factor to the team – and is a player who will excite the fans.”

The Bath-born forward joined Bristol Rovers as a nine-year-old and became their second-youngest debutant – aged 15 years and 277 days – in a League Two clash with Leyton Orient in December 2004.

Chelsea snapped him up for a tribunal-set fee in July 2005 and he spent five years with the London club.

He made his first-team debut as a late substitute in a League Cup semi-final clash with Wycombe Wanderers in January, 2007.

Sinclair, who scored his first senior goal for Chelsea in a 4-0 League Cup win over Hull during the 2007/08 campaign, enjoyed loan spells at Plymouth, QPR, Charlton and Crystal Palace to gain first-team experience.

The 5ft8in ace also spent the second half of the 2008/09 season at Birmingham, helping them win automatic promotion to the top flight.

Sinclair’s form encouraged Wigan to snap him up for the following campaign, when he made his first real impact on the Barclays Premier League under then-Latics boss Roberto Martinez.

In summer 2010, he joined Swansea on a permanent basis and quickly became a fans’ favourite at the Liberty Stadium.

He scored 19 goals in his first season for the Swans, including a play-off final hat-trick in a 4-2 Wembley win over Reading to make them the first Welsh club to reach the Barclays Premier League.

Sinclair carried that form into the top flight, scoring eight goals in 37 games, prompting then-Premier League champions City to splash £6.2million to take him to the Etihad Stadium last summer, where he found first-team opportunities hard to come by.

In total, Sinclair has made 211 career league appearances, including 64 as a substitute, scoring 53 times.