Cardiff City have confirmed their third transfer of the summer window as 20-year-old Ollie Tanner becomes the latest player to join the Bluebirds.
Cardiff's interest in the youngster, who signs from non-League club Lewes FC, was first reported by WalesOnline last month. The Bluebirds invited him for a trial period which has ultimately been successful and following a medical on Tuesday, the player put pen to paper on a two-year deal with City.
It is understood Tanner, for whom Cardiff are believed to have paid £40,000, is indeed a signing for the first team and not for the under-23s. He officially becomes a City player on June 10, when the transfer window opens.
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Cardiff were linked with Tanner at the back end of the January transfer window, but so, too, were Southampton, Luton, Watford, Brighton and, most notably, Spurs.
The forward, who can operate on either wing as well as in the No.10 position, had the opportunity to sign for Tottenham in January but rejected the north London club. In a statement, Tanner's club wrote at the time: "Lewes Football Club would like to confirm that whilst the club and a Premier League club agreed a deal in principle for the transfer of Ollie Tanner, Ollie and the Premier League club were not ultimately able to agree personal terms and he remains a Lewes FC player."
Tanner, who was on the books at Arsenal as a youngster before moving to Bromley in 2018, played out the rest of the season with Lewes, who finished seventh in the Isthmian League Premier Division, but it was always expected that clubs higher up the football pyramid would go in for him again in the summer.
And that has happened, with Championship outfit Cardiff winning the race to his signature. Clearly, it will be a sizeable step up in standard to what the player is used to, having to step up five tiers to the Championship, but Steve Morison has said he now has his opportunity and he should grab it with both hands.
“When his move fell through with Tottenham, we were all over it. We monitored him for the rest of the season and he did really well," Morison said of the signing.
“He wants to be a part of it. That’s what we want; we want people who want to be here, so we’re giving him a platform to build on and it’s up to him to take the opportunity now. He comes in as his first experience of full-time football, but we’ll nurture him and manage him right.”
Tanner himself said: “I’m very excited. It’s a massive club, and I can’t wait to get going. There were a lot of young boys last season who got a good chance here, and it appealed to me massively.
“The manager really sold it to me and I thought it would be perfect. It’s good as a young player, because you’re always looking for a chance. I’m a fast, powerful winger. I like to score goals and get assists."
Tanner becomes the third signing in six days following the arrivals of Ebou Adams and Jak Alnwick.
