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Villa snap up full-back pair Young and Shorey

08/08/2008

Aston Villa have completed the double signing of England full-backs Luke Young and Nicky Shorey.

Young, 29, only joined Middlesbrough last summer but signed a deal to join the Midlands side for an undisclosed fee after passing a medical on Thursday.

Shorey, a fellow England international, had been linked with a number of clubs following Reading's relegation to the Championship but has opted to sign a three-year contract at Villa Park, also for an undisclosed fee.

The departure of Olof Mellberg to Juventus and the broken ankle suffered by Wilfred Bouma last week left Aston Villa manager Martin O'Neill in desperate need of defensive cover.

And according to O'Neill, Young, who has seven England caps, is the "natural" solution.

"The right-back position caused us a few problems for us last season in terms of us not having a natural right-back," he said.

"Luke is a natural right-back and played for England not so long ago. He did very well for Boro last season and this is a great opportunity for him."

The former Tottenham Hotspur defender added: "I'm really pleased to be here at Villa. It's happened quite quickly.

"I think at the minute Villa are a notch above Boro, and there's a great opportunity for me to play European football as well."

Shorey, capped twice by England, said he was "delighted" to have concluded a deal to join Villa.

"This is a massive club and I'm really looking forward to it," he explained.

"There were other clubs interested but this is such a big club. Obviously I talked to the manager and he's very positive and very ambitious. That's what I am - especially after last season. I want to get back into the Premier League and show people what I can do."

The 27-year-old continued: "Villa are definitely going places. You can tell by the signings they're making and the people already at the club."