Wrexham have signed goalkeeper, Anthony Patterson from Sunderland for £8m.
Patterson’s transfer has ended his 16-year stay at Sunderland since he joined their academy in 2010, which has since seen him graduate through their youth ranks to achieve 51 clean sheets in 169 senior appearances.
Last season however saw the now 26-year-old fall down the Black Cats’ pecking order behind Robin Roefs and Melker Ellborg and made one appearance, which led him to join Millwall on loan in the second half of the campaign as the Lions ultimately missed out on promotion in the Championship Play-Offs.
Sunderland consequently decided to sell him for a minimum fee of £8m which sparked interest from various second-tier clubs, until Wrexham met their valuation with further add-ons and Patterson has signed a four-year contract until June 2030.
Upon completing his move, Patterson revealed that Wrexham suits his ambitions moving forward.
“Wrexham really suits me in terms of what I want to do in my career, so it feels like a perfect fit.
“I’ve seen the journey that the Club’s been on and it’s really exciting to now be part of it. I want to play in the Premier League with Wrexham, and I think everything is in place and ready for the Club to do that.
“I’m really looking forward to playing in front of our fans, pushing up the league, and getting this Football Club to where it deserves to be.”
Manager, Phil Parkinson added: “We’re delighted to welcome Anthony to the Football Club.
“He’s a young keeper, but with a lot of experience at Championship level, and we look forward to working with him.”
Patterson made his senior debut for Sunderland in November 2020 in a 2-1 loss at Fleetwood Town in that season’ EFL Trophy and went on to make a second appearance in the competition that same season.
He then spent the first half of the 2021-22 season on loan at Notts County where he kept three clean sheets in 13 appearances, before he was recalled mid-season due to an injury crisis and went on to help Sunderland achieve promotion to Championship via the League One Play-Offs.
Patterson subsequently consolidated his status as first-choice goalkeeper in the Championship across the following three seasons, which culminated in promotion to the Premier League via the 2024 Championship Play-Offs.
Whilst on loan at Millwall in the second half of last season, Patterson kept seven clean sheets in 16 appearances.
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