Premiership - Richardson joins Sunderland
England winger Kieran Richardson has joined Sunderland from
Manchester United for an undisclosed fee believed to be in the
region of £5 million.
Sunderland boss Roy Keane makes Richardson his first major signing
of the summer, fighting off alleged interest from Sven-Goran
Eriksson at Manchester City.
Richardson, 22, has been at United since leaving West Ham aged 16
in 2001 but looked to be on his way out following the big money
signings of Nani and Anderson.
He was called up to England's 2005 summer tour of the United States
after impressing on loan at West Brom - scoring twice on his debut
- and, despite being tipped for a permanent move to the Hawthorns,
United boss Sir Alex Ferguson asked him back to Old Trafford in
order to provide competition for veteran winger Ryan Giggs.
But, despite helping United to Carling Cup glory in 2006,
Richardson struggled to curry favour for the big games and
ultimately lost his place in the England squad.
Richardson becomes Sunderland's third signing since winning the
Championship, joining defenders Russell Anderson and Greg Halford
at the Stadium of Light.
