We did a signing!

It’s taken 29 long days, but we finally completed a signing, as welcome Tommy Elphick on loan from Aston Villa.

The central defender has joined from the fellow Championship side until the end of the season, as he becomes our first addition of the January window. He brings a wealth of experience to the table, having achieved promotion to the Premier Legaue with Bournemouth in 2015 as captain.

After falling slightly out of favour for the Cherries’, he joined Villa the following summer for a sizeable fee, but failed to live up to expectations at Villa Park under Steve Bruce. The signing of John Terry pretty much sealed his fate, as he has just managed six appearances this term.

Considering we have been screaming for Stam to bring in a left-back and a striker, it’s odd that we’ve brought in a centre half. I can see the logic though, with McShane currently injured and Ilori & Blackett hit and miss with their form, it makes sense to bring in another defender.

Another thing that strikes me about Elphick in his interview is that he talks a lot of sense and comes across as a natural leader. He was Bournemouth’s captain and was immediately made captain at Villa when he joined, so is clearly trusted. He was signed in time to play tonight.

Let’s hope we are not done just yet in this window, with just a day and a half to go. I’d still like to see a creative midfielder and striker brought in, but I’m not holding my hopes up considering we’ve made our first signing two days before the window closes! Watch this space.