Bristol City are confident they’ve beaten off a host of Championship rivals to secure the signing of Joe Bryan on a free transfer from Fulham.
The signing of Bryan represents a homecoming for the defender, having left Ashton Gate in the summer of 2018 for west London after emerging through the club’s academy and making 230 first-team appearances.
Cardiff City, Swansea City, Blackburn Rovers, Stoke City and Millwall were all keen on the 29-year-old but the Robins have won the race for his signature and he’s expected to be the first summer signing announced by the club in the coming weeks.
Bryan brings with him not only knowledge of the club and an already-established relationship with the fanbase but, crucially, Championship promotion know-how having been part of two Fulham squads who have successfully secured their place in the Premier League from the second tier.
He is very much a Championship-ready player who should make a seamless return to the club and the first-team, bringing much needed leadership and experience to further aid the development of the younger individuals in the dressing room.
He also returns with a burning and unfulfilled desire to get his hometown club into the Premier League after the missed opportunity of 2017/18, which proved his final season in red.
Although, on the face of it, he looks to be competing directly with Cam Pring for the left-back slot, he can easily play further up the field as a wing-back, left-sided midfielder or even in attack, while his technical skill also allow him to be deployed in midfield.