Malbranque completes switch to Sunderland
Wednesday, 30 Jul 2008 22:19
Malbranque is Keane's third signing from Spurs this summer
Sunderland have completed the transfer of Spurs midfielder Steed Malbranque for an undisclosed fee after the Frenchman passed a medical.
Malbranque joins Teemu Tainio and Pascal Chimbonda as former Spurs players to join Roy Keane's side in the last week.
The midfielder has signed a four-year contract with the north east club and could go straight into the squad for the Black Cats' friendly against Ajax on Sunday.
Sunderland boss Roy Keane feels Malbranque will add inventiveness to the Sunderland midfield and believes he will become a fans' favourite because of his style of play.
Keane said: "Steed is another signing which will excite our supporters and we're delighted to have him here.
"He's played in the Premier League for six or seven years now and has been a consistent performer for both Tottenham and
Fulham - he creates a lot for the team and can chip in with a goal or two."
Keane expects Malbranque to provide plenty of chances for new striker El-Hadji Diouf and thinks the Frenchman will energise the Black Cats' attack.
"Steed is a very tricky player and is always looking for the ball and looking to open teams up. He'll certainly offer something different to our team and will further increase competition for places in the midfield area," added Keane.
Malbranque made 96 appearances for Tottenham, scoring 12 goals, since joining the north London club in January 2006.
Before that he had a successful spell with Fulham where he scored 44 times in 211 games.