Norwich City have completed the signing of Lincoln City defender Sean Raggett.
Lincoln’s Sean Raggett Joins Norwich On Three-Year Deal
Lincoln captured the services of the highly-rated defender last summer from fellow non-league side Dover. Since then, he went on to be one of their stand-out players of last season. However, his prolific form turned the heads of higher calibre club, one of which were Championship outfit Norwich City.
Despite the Imps offering him a new contract following last campaign, Raggett has opted to move on. He has penned a three-year deal at Carrow Road for an undisclosed fee. Norwich, however, have agreed to loan the defender back out to Lincoln until January. It’s safe to say the defender is happy with the move:
“I’m delighted to be here as it’s a massive move for me”, he said.
“It’s a big opportunity in my career and I’m really excited. There’s been a lot of speculation but I’ve just focused on my football and I’m really pleased it’s come off.
“Norwich is a huge club and it was a chance I couldn’t turn down. I’ve had a great time at Lincoln and it will be good to go back for the first few months of the season and thank them for what they’ve done for me.”
Raggett, who was also linked with Sunderland, West Bromwich Albion and West Ham this summer, bagged seven goals for the League Two side last season. The most notable of these were his late winners at Forest Green and top flight Burnley in the FA Cup.
Norwich’s latest signing has also featured in Lincoln’s opening three games. He claimed the man of the match award in their curtain raiser at Wycombe. He also impressed in their following two matches against Rotherham and Morecambe respectively.
Cowley Happy to Retain Raggett
Lincoln manager Danny Cowley is undoubtedly pleased in succeeding in his attempts of retaining Raggett’s services, albeit on loan, for another few months. He claimed he has ‘worked hard to get the best deal for the club’:
“We’ve worked hard to get the best deal for the Club moving forward and being able to negotiate the best deal for all three parties was key,” said the Lincoln boss.
“It allows Sean to sign a long-term contract at a Championship club with Premier League aspirations, whilst also allowing him to come back here on loan to play games.
“To be able to bring him back was a vital part of the deal and the fact that Sean wanted to come back and continue his development with us is massive for us both as he is irreplaceable both as a person and as a player.
“It was always about the right pathway for Sean’s development and credit must go to him for his part in helping us find a middle ground between the two parties.”
Raggett will see out the remainder of the calendar year at Lincoln before joining up with his new side. However, he didn’t travel with the squad to Exeter yesterday. This was in order to get the deal over the line ahead of the weekend.
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