Crystal Palace striker Jon Macken has joined the Blues on loan until January 3rd. Town boss Jim Magilton has been chasing the Irish international for the last fortnight.
Initially Palace were less than keen on the move but after the Blues agreed to pay a greater share of the 28-year-old's wages, they agreed to the switch.
Macken started his career at hometown club Manchester United but moved on to Preston on a free transfer in 1997 having failed to break into the first team at Old Trafford.
It was at Deepdale under David Moyes's management where the 5ft 11in tall striker made his name, scoring 74 goals in 229 games and winning England U18 caps. He was also named the players' player of the year twice and fans' player of the year once when at Deepdale.
Macken's form, particularly his hold-up play, alerted then Manchester City manager Kevin Keegan and in February 2002 he paid Preston £5 million for his services, saying at the time: "I rate Jon Macken's ability very highly otherwise I would not have broken the club's transfer record. I think he is an excellent player who is different from what we have here at the moment."
The frontman's spell with City was hit by injury and he made only 59 appearances, scoring 12 goals, although in August 2004 he won his first and so far only full cap for the Republic of Ireland as a sub in a friendly against Bulgaria at Lansdowne Road.
Macken left City in June 2005, joining Crystal Palace for £750,000. However, he has made little impact at Selhurst Park, injuries again taking their toll, and has scored only two goals in 30 games. This season his only involvement was the first 45 minutes in Palace's second game of the season against Southend and the Carling Cup tie with Notts County.
Town fans may recall Macken as the first Palace player red-carded in the game between the two sides at Portman Road last season, having caught Owen Garvan with an elbow.