Nine years ago today we completed the signing of Northern Ireland midfielder Steven Davis from Aston Villa. please log in to view this image Davis agreed a four-year deal for an undisclosed fee believed to be around £4 million. "The 22 year-old said "I am pleased that we have been able to reach an agreement between the two clubs to enable me to play for Fulham next season. It was decision that took a lot of consideration as I have been at Aston Villa throughout my playing career, so leaving was not an easy choice to make. However, I discussed the move with the Fulham manager and we talked about his plans here, which really impressed me. So although it's sad to be leaving Villa, I know this is the right decision for me and my future The Fulham boss Lawrie Sanchez said "Steven is a young and exciting player and one whose signature reaffirms my ambitions for this club. I made him the youngest player to captain Northern Ireland with good reason - his commitment, passion and enthusiasm for the game are hard to rival, and I know that he will bring real quality to our squad." Davis scored nine goals in 102 senior games for the Midland club after graduating from the youth academy at Villa Park." Unfortunately things didn't work out for him at the Cottage - probably best put as simply his being in 'the wrong place, at the wrong time'. Since then we know he's had better times up North and more recently at Southampton. And of course with Northern Ireland in the 2016 Euros - along with Aaron Hughes who also signed for us from Villa, albeit a week earlier and for the lesser fee of £1m. What if .. ? Nah, cant even speculate what if Lawrie Sanchez hadn't been the manager since we probably wouldn't have signed him in that case. In this instance it's another cliche I think, 'whatever wil be , will be'.
