Town sign Leadbitter and Edwards for £4m

Grant Leadbitter

IPSWICH Town have confirmed the signings of Sunderland duo Grant Leadbitter and Carlos Edwards.

The fee for central midfielder Leadbitter could rise to £2.6million, the 23-year-old signing a three-year deal.

Edwards could end up costing the Blues up to £1.35million, the 30-year-old - who can also play at right-back - putting pen to paper on a two-year contract.

Leadbitter is in Ipswich today and will undertake his first training session with his new team mates tomorrow morning. Edwards is currently away on international duty with Trinidad & Tobago and will not return to Ipswich until Friday, September 11 - just a day before Town's trip to Middlesbrough.

Carlos Edwards

A fee was agreed for both players with Sunderland boss Steve Bruce last Thursday but contract negotiations have proved difficult.

However, Town manager Roy Keane has finally landed two of the players that helped him get Sunderland promoted to the Premier League in the 2006/7 season having missed out on Daryl Murphy and Dean Whitehead earlier this summer.

Both Edwards and Leadbitter featured in Sunderland's Carling Cup win over Norwich last week, while Leadbitter replaced an injured Lee Cattermole during the Black Cats' home defeat at Chelsea earlier this season.

Sunderland boss Steve Bruce has decided to cash in on the duo though after undertaking a huge spending spree this summer. Leadbitter has found himself behind new signings Cattermole and Lorik Cana in the central midfield pecking order, while Steed Malbranque has been preferred down the right to Edwards.

Factfiles

Carlos Edwards

Age: 30

Position: Right-winger / right-back

Born: Port of Spain, Trinidad & Tobago

Caps: 74 (four goals)

- Moved to England in 2000 in a £250k move to Wrexham and helped the Saddlers gain promotion from the Third Division in 2003. After making over 150 appearances at the club he joined Luton when his contract expired in 2005.

- After a strong first season with Luton, Roy Keane signed him in the 2007 January window for £1.4m and it was his spectacular late goal against Burnley that effectively sealed the club's promotion to the top-flight.

- A spate of injuries (hamstring, leg fracture) largely kept him out of the following season in the Premier League, while last year he spent a short period on loan at Wolves after slipping down the pecking order.

Grant Leadbitter

Age: 23

Position: Midfield

Born: Chester-Le-Street, England

Caps: Three for England at U21 level

- Grew up a Sunderland fan and joined the club at the age of 16. Made his debut for the club in 2003, went out to Rotherham on loan in 2005, and returned to be played more regularly by Mick McCarthy.

- Leadbitter re-signed for the club at the start of the 2006/7 season after speculation that he would move to a Premier League team and took part in every one of Sunderland's games, contributing seven goals, as Roy Keane led them to the Championship title.

- Featured heavily in Sunderland's first season in the top-flight and scored an emotional goal against Arsenal just days after his dad, who had died in tragic circumstances, had his ashes buried under the Stadium of Light pitch.

- Continued to feature regularly last season but has now found himself down the pecking order following the arrivals of Lee Cattermole and Lorik Cana in the north east.