Young Manchester City keeper Gavin Bazunu has revealed the Blues were among the clubs to show interest in him prior to him opting to join Portsmouth on loan a fortnight ago.
As reported earlier in the summer, Town were weighing-up whether to bring in a loan keeper from a Premier League club with Liverpool’s Caoimhin Kelleher one of those who was being considered.
Now Kelleher’s Irish international colleague Bazunu, who impressed on loan at Rochdale last season, says he was also among those eyed by the Blues.
"I spoke to [Pompey boss] Danny [Cowley] on the phone a couple of times before I made the decision, he said all the right things to me," the 19-year-old told the Portsmouth News.
"They were really positive things about how he wanted to play and how I’d be able to help the team. It was a really exciting prospect, which is why I chose to come here.
"I had a few other options such as Ipswich, Charlton and Burton, but for me this felt like the right move.
"I didn’t actually speak to Paul Cook, but, talking with City and my agent, they believed Pompey would be a better area to come to develop my game. For me, I have a desire to play — and play good football.
"Obviously being at Manchester City and the way they play, I wanted to come to a team which wants to perform in a similar fashion. That’s only going to improve me as a goalkeeper and help my development.
"My overall goal is to be number one at Manchester City one day. To give myself the best chance of achieving that goal is to come to a team which plays similarly.
"I’ve put a lot of trust in Danny, he has told me what he wants to do this season and it sounds really exciting, so I can’t wait to get started.
"From training over the last two weeks you can see how we want to go about things, playing really high energy, with intensity, and hopefully playing exciting football.”
Late last month, Town signed Vaclav Hladky from Salford City but could still look for another keeper with Tomas Holy understood to be among those who have been told they can move on this summer.