BLACKPOOL SIGN FOUR

Blackpool have announced four signings this morning after a pre-season of unrest at Bloomfield Road.

Ludovic Sylvestre, Elliot Grandin, Malaury Martin and Craig Cathcart have all joined the Seasiders ahead of the new season, which starts at Wigan on Saturday.

The news follows 48 hours of rumours that Ian Holloway had walked out on the club following a dispute with Karl Oyston over transfer funds.

But the Chairman has finally (!) loosened the purse strings to capture the three players – who all go into the ‘Pool squad at Wigan.

Sylvestre is a tidy central midfielder who Ian Holloway had tracked earlier in the summer and joins on an undisclosed fee from Mlada Boleslav. He has penned a two-year deal with option of a third.

Probably the stand out signing is winger Elliot Grandin from CSKA Sofia on an undisclosed fee. The 22-year-old joined the Bulgarian club on a one-and-a-half-year deal in January but after a spring of impressive performances, the lure of the Premiership was too much – signing a two year deal with the option of a third.

Malaury Martin is the third to complete a move to Bloomfield Road. The Under 21 French international captain is also a central midfielder and comes from Monaco. He has been one who Ollie has had on trial for a while and signs a one year deal.

Craig Cathcart has also signed for around £500,000 from Manchester United on a three-year deal with the option of another year with the central defender one of the brightest prospects in English football at the minute.

We’ll have more on these players as the day progresses, so stick to Vital.