Leicester - Ben Hamer (free transfer)
[article=http://www.lcfc.com/news/article/220514-goalkeeper-hamer-signs-for-leicester-city-1568644.aspx#50ZIVGWCW36gacKL.99]Leicester City have moved to bolster their goalkeeping options with the addition of highly-rated Ben Hamer on a free transfer
from Championship side Charlton Athletic.
The
26-year-old shot stopper will join the Foxes once his contract expires on July 1, after which he will link up with the rest of the squad ahead of the Club’s first Premier League campaign in 10 years.
Hamer has
spent the last three seasons at The Valley following an August 2011 move from Reading – the club with whom he began his career after signing as a 15-year-old.
Hamer told LCFC.com after signing:
"It’s fantastic to be here. It was an opportunity that was too good to turn down for me and I’m looking forward to coming on board and improving myself as a player.
"There are great staff here and it’s a great set up, so once the players get back there are all the ingredients to put in a great performance in the Premier League next season.
"Being involved in Premier League football has always been a dream of mine since I was a kid. It’s been a long road and to finally get the opportunity to do that was a big factor in the move.
"I want to challenge myself in my career, and coming here to a big club going into the Premier League is a big opportunity for me."
Under the guidance of former City man Chris Powell, Hamer flourished for the Addicks, and was one of the standout performers for the team last term, playing a key role in their survival.
The
6ft 4ins goalkeeper is an imposing and commanding figure in the penalty area, and has plenty of first team experience under his belt –
over 250 league games from Crawley, Brentford, Exeter and Charlton.
Despite never appearing for Reading in the league as a youngster, Hamer wasted no time in building an impressive reputation for himself out on loan.
That started with a 45-game spell at Crawley Town during 2006/07 – during which he was named Player of the Season for the then Conference outfit.
Four separate loan spells with newly-promoted Brentford followed for Hamer, of which the 2008/09 campaign was a standout one for the Taunton-born ‘keeper.
He helped the Bees storm to the League 2 title and kept a hugely impressive 20 clean sheets along the way. Hamer missed just one match that season, and after another series of standout performances on loan at Exeter, then Charlton boss Powell swooped for his services in 2011.
The Addicks clinched the League 1 title in his first season, and the custodian has proved to be a mainstay of the Charlton team ever since – making over 120 appearances in three seasons across all competitions.
Hamer, who is a
fluent German speaker having lived in the country for part of his childhood, played twice against the Foxes last season, including Charlton’s 2-1 win at the Valley.[/article]
Leicester - Jack Barmby
[article=http://www.lcfc.com/news/article/220514-barmby-to-join-development-squad-1568674.aspx#Vt1gC4OevKIcZhmW.99]Leicester City have moved to strengthen their Development Squad with the
addition of highly-rated Manchester United youngster Jack Barmby on a two-year deal from 1 July.
Son of former England international Nick and capped at England Under-19s level himself, Jack is a
talented and versatile striker with an impressive goalscoring record.
The 19-year-old
spent the second half of the 2013/14 season on loan with League 2 side Hartlepool United, with whom he scored on his Football League debut in a 2-0 home victory over York City.
His impressive form at Victoria Park saw his loan spell twice extended, with Barmby eventually
ending the season with five goals in 17 appearances.
Equally adept performing on the left wing, Barmby has earned a reputation for scoring spectacular goals with Manchester United, and ended the 2012/13 season as the Under-18s’ top scorer.[/article]
Leicester - Matthew Upson (free transfer)
[article=http://www.lcfc.com/news/article/220514-leicester-city-swoop-for-upson-1568635.aspx#xAGY2JjyT8O3XDQ9.99]Experienced defender Matthew Upson will become the latest addition to Nigel Pearson’s Leicester City squad after agreeing a
one-year deal with the Club, starting from 1 July.
Upson’s
contract with Championship play-off semi-finalists Brighton and Hove Albion expires this summer, and the in-demand former Arsenal and West Ham United centre half was delighted to agree terms with the Foxes.
The 35-year-old boasts 22 England caps and 447 career appearances, and will bring a wealth of experience to City’s back line ahead of next season’s Premier League campaign.
Upson’s commanding performances at the heart of the Seagulls defence has seen him lead them to two consecutive top-six finishes in the Championship, as well as
scooping the Club’s Player of the Year award last month.
The defender initially joined the Seagulls on loan during the second half of the 2012/13 season, before signing a one-year deal last summer after his contract with Stoke City expired.
He went on to make 47 appearances in all competitions for Brighton last season, scoring twice. Suffolk-born Upson’s career
began at Luton Town in 1996, where he made his league debut in a 1-0 win over Rotherham before being
snapped up by Arsene Wenger’s Arsenal in 1997 for a fee believed to be in the region of £2 million.
Premier League and FA Cup winners’ medals followed for Upson, as well as loan spells with Nottingham Forest, Crystal Palace and Reading, until Birmingham City swooped to secure his services with a £1 million move in January 2003.
During his four years at St Andrew’s, Upson further enhanced his reputation in over 120 appearances, and even earned his first call-up to the full national team.
His debut came under former City boss Sven-Goran Eriksson against South Africa in 2003, with a further six caps coming while at Birmingham.
That impressive form persuaded West Ham to spend a reported £7.5 million to secure his services in January 2007, with Upson again going on to enhance his reputation across
nearly 150 games for the Hammers.
Upson scored both of his two England goals while with West Ham, both of which came against Germany. The first was England’s opener in a 2-1 friendly win in November 2008, before scoring the second during the 2010 World Cup in South Africa.
The defender stayed with West Ham for four impressive seasons before, following the team’s relegation, he agreed a
free transfer to Stoke City in the summer of 2011, after which he joined the Seagulls.[/article]
