Westwood gets three-year deal at Sunderland

SUNDERLAND HAVE finally ended the uncertainty regarding Ireland international goalkeeper Keiren Westwood’s future by confirming the 26-year-old has signed a contract with the club and will officially join on July 1st, the day after his three-year deal at Coventry City expires.

Despite Coventry’s hopes of keeping him and Leeds United’s late interest, Westwood’s move to the Stadium of Light had been widely flagged in recent weeks and, after completing a medical at Sunderland on Tuesday, he finalised the terms of what is believed to be a €34,500 a week three-year deal. Seb Larsson has also joined from Birmingham City.

As things stand Westwood will compete with Craig Gordon and Simon Mignolet for the goalkeeper’s jersey but there is a growing expectation that, with Gordon being prone to injury and in the last year of his contract, Steve Bruce’s intention is to start the new league campaign with Westwood in the team.

If so, the news will be a significant boost to Giovanni Trapattoni, who will be pleased to see him playing at a level from which he can seriously challenge Shay Given for his place in the Irish team. The move may well also add to Given’s sense of urgency about getting away from Manchester City during the close season.

Another Irish goalkeeper, Joe Murphy, is expected to leave League One outfit Scunthorpe on a free transfer in order to replace Westwood at Coventry City.

Former Irish under-21 international Jimmy Ryan, meanwhile, looks set to join Scunthorpe over the coming days with the midfielder having reportedly become a target for manager Alan Knill as he seeks to build a side capable of bouncing back from relegation.

The 22-year-old is out of contract at Accrington Stanley after being named in the PFA’s League Two team of the year for his efforts there and several other clubs have reportedly sought to sign him.

Irish striker Cillian Sheridan is continuing his efforts to win a contract at a Major League Soccer Club, with the 22-year-old appearing this week for the Portland Timbers in a reserve team win over the San Jose Earthquakes. The ex-Celtic player, who has most recently been playing in Bulgaria with CSKA Sofia, had scored for the Seattle Sounders in a game against the Vancouver Whitecaps a couple of weeks back but appears not to have done enough to prompt the club to make an acceptable offer.