(Reuters) - Newcastle United have completed the signing of goalkeeper Nick Pope from Championship side Burnley on a four-year contract, the Premier League club said on Thursday. Newcastle reportedly paid a fee in the region of 10 million pounds ($12.23 million) for the 30-year-old, who had a year left on his contract at Turf Moor. Pope, who joined Burnley in 2016, made 36 Premier League appearances and kept nine clean sheets last season but could not prevent his side from being relegated to the second tier after finishing 18th in the table. "Nick is an exceptional Premier League and international level goalkeeper so I'm very pleased to be adding strong competition to a very important position," Newcastle manager Eddie Howe said. Pope, capped eight times by England, will compete with Martin Dubravka for a place in the starting line-up. Newcastle, who were acquired by a Saudi Arabia-led consortium in October, finished 11th last season. ($1 = 0.8175 pounds) (Reporting by Dhruv Munjal in Bengaluru, editing by Ed Osmond)
Nick Pope: Newcastle sign England goalkeeper from Burnley in £10m deal
Nick Pope has completed his £10m move to Newcastle from Burnley with the England goalkeeper signing a four-year contract. The 30-year-old was keen to stay in the Premier League after Burnley's relegation to the Championship to ensure he remains in Gareth Southgate's England plans ahead of the World Cup in Qatar this winter. Pope, who had one year left on his contract at Burnley, will challenge Martin Dubravka for the No 1 jersey at St James' Park. The former Charlton goalkeeper becomes Eddie Howe's second summer signing after left-back Matt Targett joined earlier this month. Pope said: "Now I'm here, I can't wait to get started. The deal has taken a couple of weeks to come to fruition but it got over the line really quickly, and I'm delighted to be here and I'm really looking forward to getting stuck into it." Howe was delighted to have got his man after initially looking to strengthen his goalkeeping department in January. The Magpies boss said: "Nick is an exceptional Premier League and international level goalkeeper so I'm very pleased to be adding strong competition to a very important position. "There has been a lot of interest in him from other clubs this summer, so I'd like to thank our owners and everyone behind the scenes for getting us ahead of the competition. I'm delighted he is joining us as we prepare for the exciting challenge ahead." Analysis: Why Toon are putting their faith in Pope Sky Sports football journalist Ben Grounds: "Newcastle have been shrewd operators in the summer transfer window thus far, with Pope's arrival set to be the first new face on Tyneside after Matt Targett's loan move from Aston Villa was made permanent. "The position of goalkeeper wasn't the most obvious area in need of an upgrade by the end of last season. Dubravka had been performing admirably in helping the club ease away from any relegation danger, keeping eight clean sheets and conceding just 35 goals in the 26 games he played in total. "But Pope has demonstrated over several years just what a fine shot-stopper he is, memorably producing saves in away draws against West Ham and Aston Villa as Burnley's quest for survival fell just short.
blogpay
Total Comments: 0