Sunderland get Manchester United defenders for 4 years

Resham Ahmed July 8, 2011 0

Sunderland get Manchester United defenders for 4 years

MANCHESTER: The Barclays English Premier League (EPL) soccer club Sunderland signed two Manchester United defenders John O’Shea and Wes Brown on four years contracts here Thursday.

John O'Shea

The EPL clubs confirmed the signing of two defenders who were not regular part of the Manchester United’s starting line-up.

Another Manchester United player, Darron Gibson of Ireland, was also associated with a move to Sunderland by the British newspapers.

John O’Shea, 30, who is an Ireland international, and Wes Brown, who is former England defender, had to wait for their turns while playing for Manchester United but both are likely to get great opportunities to showcase their real talent at the Sunderland as the duo may get starting line-up appearance.

Wes Brown

Talking about signing John O’Shea, former Manchester United player, Steve Bruce, who is now Sunderland manager, said that he was excited about the move. “John has been a solid, consistent, part of Manchester United’s squad for well over a decade which goes to show the fantastic pedigree of the player we have signed,” Bruce said in a statement on the club’s website.

He further stated, “O’Shea is a wonderful professional both on and off the field and his wealth of experience and versatility will be great attributes for us.”

On the other hand, Wes Brown, 31, has come out of the Manchester United fold for the first time in his career as he represented the Red Devils in 361 matches and won five English Premier League and two Champions League titles with the team. He has also played 23 matches for England.

Paying tribute to the outgoing players, Manchester United manager Alex Ferguson said in a statement on the club’s website, “In his time with us, he (Brown) certainly became a favourite with the fans for his no-nonsense approach to the game and his infectious personality”.

He added, “It’s always the hardest of decisions to let loyal servants go. But life moves on and, unquestionably, Wes will get the chance to make a real contribution to Steve Bruce’s Sunderland and I’m delighted to be passing him into such good hands.”

Talking about O’Shea, Sir Alex Ferguson paid huge tributes to the United servant, “His versatility, calmness under pressure and his commitment to the cause at United means that fans will remember him with great affection. John has won so many medals — and has deserved every one of them. He epitomises our club’s approach as a team. After so many years of service to United, I’m pleased that John has found a career opportunity which will deliver the number of games he deserves.”