Aston Villa take Zat Knight for £3.5 million

Aston Villa took the less expensive road signing Zat Knight in a deal worth £3.5 million.

Aston Villa take Zat Knight for £3.5 million Fulham defender Zat Knight signed for Aston Villa in a four-year long contract worth £3.5 million. The 27-year-old defender initially extended his stay with Fulham this summer by signing a new three-year deal, but the White's boss Lawrie Sanchez accepted the offer from Aston Villa to part with Knight. The offer from Villa came after the initial interest in West Brom's Curtis Davies subsided, when the deal figure went over £8 million.

"Zat has got a lot of natural talent. I'm hoping that if he performs the way he can perform and has done in the past, we can expect him to be a big asset," Villa boss Martin O'Neill was quoted. He also mentioned that Davies is still a possibility, but the numbers must be worked out first.

This will be first transfer for the 6-foot-6 defender. He started his professional career with Fulham in 1999 and has been with the Cottagers since, although he spend an year on loan at Peterborough United in 2000, playing only 8 games. Interesting fact about Zat Knight is that he was signed from his youth club Rushall Olympic for 30 tracksuits, which were delivered by Fulham, even though they were not required to pay a fee, since Knight was not professionally contracted at Rushall Olympics.

Odds on Aston Villa becoming the Barclays Premier League Champion this season are 350/1, according to the U.K. oddsmaker Bet365 online.

Published on 08/29/2007