£25m Veteran defender set to sign for Stoke City as Watford still drag for the Defender Services as Cleverley Declares
That is according to Italian outlet Il Resto Del Carlino, who claim that Girma’s current employers are wanting a fee of between £25million and £35million for his services, and that there is also competition from Serie A outfit Monza as well.
It’s reported that the 6ft 3in attacking midfielder has held talks with both Leeds United and Watford about a potential move to the Championship, and whilst Reggiana don’t want to lose their star player, the club are aware that a move abroad could tempt Girma.
The Italian outfit finished 11th in Serie B last season, and with interest from both Leeds United and Watford, along with Serie A side Monza, they could struggle to keep hold of the 22-year-old this summer.
The two-time promotion winning defender rose to prominence when he progressed through the Middlesbrough academy in 2010 and was earmarked as a potential star for years to come when he progressed into the starting line-up under Tony Mowbray.
Gibson starred for England’s youth teams for a number of seasons and was a fundamental part of the Boro team which earned promotion into the Premier League in 2015/16, finishing second behind eventual champions Burnley.
Despite relegation, Gibson was one of the Teesside’s clubs top performers in the top-flight and his form earned him an England call-up against Lithuania in 2017 though he never got onto the pitch.
His form at Middlesbrough prompted Burnley to spend a then club-record fee of £15m to sign the defender. However, the move never really worked out for either party and in an injury-ridden spell at Turf Moor he managed just one appearance and one goal in a 5-1 defeat before departing to join Norwich City three years later for just £8m.
Gibson was a regular at Carrow Road for four seasons and was notably a member of the club’s promotion-winning and relegation suffering team between 2020 and 2022. He agreed to leave the club earlier this month following a 4-0 play-off semi-final defeat to Leeds United and has now signed a three-year contract at the Bet365 Stadium.
“Having won promotion from the second-tier, Ben is well versed in knowing what it takes to be successful at this level,” said Stoke sporting director Jonathan Walters.
Watford boss Tom Cleverley has bolstered his backroom team by hiring the distinguished Real Madrid man Alberto Garrido as the club’s new first team coach. The 48-year-old Spainard will work alongside assistant head coach Damon Lathrope and first team development coach Armand Kavaja at Vicarage Road.
A delighted Cleverley claims the appointment is a statement of intent and something that can give the team the best possible chance of success.
He explained: “We are trying to rebuild a winning culture around the club again and he comes from the most successful culture in world football.
“Alberto brings a wealth of coaching experience. He has a real knowledge of how to develop top young players.”
Garrido worked at Real Madrid’s reserve team for 15 years and has helped harness the talents of stars such as Martin Odegaard, Dani Carvajal, Rodrygo and Acraf Hakimi in recent times.
Watford finished last term in 15th position – their lowest finish since 2010. Leading to the appointment of Cleverley in April as he targets huge improvement.
