Defender Ben Godfrey joins Ipswich Town
The 26-year-old joins on loan from Italian club Atalanta on a deal until the end of the season
Defender Ben Godfrey is joining Ipswich Town.
The 26-year-old joins on loan from Italian club Atalanta on a deal until the end of the season, becoming the Blues' first signing of the January transfer window.
The two-cap England international gained considerable Premier League experience with both Norwich City and Everton, before moving to Serie A in the summer, and is expected to link up with his new teammates in the coming days.
“It’s been an exciting couple of days and I’m just delighted to have signed and can’t wait to meet the lads and get started,” Ben told TownTV.
“I have really enjoyed speaking to the Manager (Kieran McKenna) and to have the opportunity to work under him now is something I’m very excited about.
"I’ve watched a lot of the games from the first half of the season and you can tell from those that the group is a tight one, full of players giving everything to achieve their goals.
“I’ve not played as much as I would have liked so far this season, but I feel ready to contribute and am looking forward to getting out there.”
After spending time with Middlesbrough as a youth player, Ben began his senior career with hometown club York City, before making the switch to Norwich in 2016.
During his time at Carrow Road, Ben enjoyed a successful loan spell as he helped Shrewsbury Town reach the League One Play-Off Final in 2017/18 before becoming part of the Norwich side promoted to the Premier League the following season.
Following the Canaries' relegation a year later, Ben joined Everton in October 2020 and made a total of 93 appearances for the Toffees, prior to joining Atalanta last summer.
Having previously captained England Under 21s, Ben made his senior international debut in June 2021 against Austria, before playing the full 90 minutes against Romania after being called up by Gareth Southgate.