Jul 24
Brad Friedel has paved the way for a move to Aston Villa by telling Blackburn Rovers he wants to leave.
The former United States number one has made it clear to new manager, Paul Ince, that he is keen to speak with both Villa AND Manchester City.
In the last 48 hours, Rovers have rejected bids from both clubs for the in-demand 37-year-old, who only signed a new two-year deal in February.
However, with Friedel making it clear he wants out, chairman John Williams has been forced to admit the American’s tough stance has left the club in a ‘tricky situation’.
The Rovers chief said: “We’ve had two bids for Brad, despite my insistence to the clubs concerned we didn’t want them. They’ve been rejected.
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June 3rd, 2011 at 10:56 am
United States goalkeeper Brad Friedel has agreed to join Tottenham.
It is understood that the 40-year-old, whose contract with Aston Villa was due to expire at the end of this month, has signed a two-year contract.
Spurs boss Harry Redknapp said: “It is good to have three such experienced top goalkeepers at the club in [Heurelho] Gomes, Carlo [Cudicini] and now Brad.
“It means we have competition for places, particularly with the number of games we’ll hopefully face next year.”
Friedel, who will not cost a fee, has a vast amount of Premier League experience, having moved to Liverpool in December 1997 from American side Columbus Crew.
He made 30 starts for the Reds before switching to Blackburn, where he made 356 appearances in almost eight years.
He then joined Villa in July 2008 and in the following December broke the record for consecutive top-flight appearances when he played in his 167th straight game – a run he had extended to 275 by the end of this season.
Friedel will provide competition for the error-prone Gomes, who fumbled a shot from Cristiano Ronaldo during Spurs’ Champions League quarter-final defeat by Real Madrid.
Villa chief executive Paul Faulkner told his club’s website: “I would like to thank Brad for the terrific contribution he has made at Aston Villa in his three seasons here.”
Friedel played 82 games for the US before retiring from international football in 2005, having represented his country at three World Cups.