Patrick Roberts joins Manchester City: Fulham wonderkid joins Premier League club for £11m

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Andrew Feinberg

White House Correspondent

Manchester City have signed Fulham’s highly-rated teenager Patrick Roberts for an undisclosed fee, but the deal is believed to be one that could eventually rise to £11m.

The 18-year-old forward has long been on the radar of England’s top clubs, but finally made the move to the Etihad Stadium on Sunday after a summer of intense speculation.

Fulham boss Kit Symons had reiterated his desire to keep Roberts at Craven Cottage despite only a year remaining on his contract, but announced on Saturday that the player had handed in an official transfer request.

The England U19 international made his debut for the Cottagers as a 55th minute substitute at Manchester City in March of last year, but could not help the club in its battle against relegation from the Premier League.

Despite making an impact off the bench at Ipswich in Fulham's first game back in the Championship, Roberts found opportunities limited under both Felix Magath and Symons. In total, he played only 356 minutes throughout last season, and completed a full match just once.

Roberts played more of an integral part in England U17's successful European Championship campaign in 2014. Named in the team of the tournament, he scored three goals and set-up four along the way as the young Three Lions defeated Netherlands on penalties in the final.

The signing completes a busy week for City in the transfer market as they move to increase their quota of homegrown players for the coming season. Roberts joins fellow Englishmen Raheem Sterling and Fabian Delph as new players at the Etihad Stadium.