Notts County have signed 21 year old midfielder Edward Francis from Harrogate Town in a two year deal that see\u2019s the six footer as a huge boost to the County squad.<\/p>\n
A holding midfielder or centre back, Francis has England Youth caps at U16,17,18 & 19\u2019s level and captained a Manchester City youth team that included the likes of Jadon Sancho and Phil Foden.<\/p>\n
Having joined Wolverhampton Wanderers in 2019, Francis was loaned out to Grasshopper Zurich in Switzerland before returning to England and playing for Harrogate Town last season, making 20 appearances in League Two.<\/p>\n
The much travelled youngster has also played in Holland and is a highly regarded footballer whom Head Coach Ian Burchnall suggests \u201cPositionally he\u2019s very, very good, he\u2019s comfortable on the ball and has a lovely left foot \u2013 as well as a good physical presence.\u201d<\/p>\n
Burchnall stated he\u2019ll be looking to play Francis in the centre of the park for Notts going forward, commenting \u201cIn the role we want Ed to play, you\u2019re the pivot of the whole team. You have to understand space, where to position yourself to receive the ball and the defensive areas to cover. You\u2019re also responsible for dictating the play, so it\u2019s a hugely important position.\u201d<\/p>\n
On signing for the club, Francis himself stated \u201cThe main thing about my next move was getting 30-40 games a season in a holding midfield role and showing everyone what I can do in that position.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNotts wanted to give me that opportunity and it\u2019s one of the key reasons I chose to come here.\u201d<\/p>\n
The Cheshire born star continued \u201cI want to get on the ball as much as possible and create attacks by distributing it to the creative players.<\/p>\n
\u201cOnce we\u2019ve got the territory, I want to help us sustain attacks and dominate teams with our pressing until we get the goals. Then it\u2019s about controlling possession and hopefully picking teams apart with some good football.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe way the head coach wants to play suits my game perfectly and it\u2019s now about me getting out on the pitch, proving myself to everyone and helping us get back into the EFL.<\/p>\n
\u201cLonger-term, the goal for me is to be here as long as possible – and the ultimate aim is to captain the club and win titles.\u201d<\/p>\n
Francis joins the likes of Joel Taylor, Frank Vincent and Kyle Cameron as other marquee signings already at the club this summer.<\/p>\n