Born and Bred: Colchester United

Colchester United have signed Middlesbrough striker Bradley Fewster on a free, following two loan spells at the club.

The young forward has spent two season-long-loan's at the club, scoring 44 goals but surprisingly Middlesbrough opted against offering Fewster a new contract, allowing Colchester to make a move for the previously capped England under 18's player.

Fewster, 20, had previously had short loan spells with Preston and York, the latter helped raise a profile for the striker as he picked up a Player Of The Month award in April, as York were relegated to the National League at the end of the 2015/16 season.

Colchester are also hopeful of bringing in Fewster's strike partner from last season, Eddie Nketiah back on a loan deal. The two enjoyed a successful season last year as they proved to be the highest scoring combination within League One. The U's have allegedly had an offer accepted for Nketiah, who was also capped by England U18's last year.

Commenting on the deal, Colchester manager Paddy McLaughlin said, 'I'm delighted to bring back Bradley to the club. He has had two fantastic years with us and has helped us to two promotions, back-to-back. He has an eye for goal, but also can be a very creative player and of course, he is also improving as a young player. He has a great attitude, both on and off the pitch and is a great lad to have in the dressing room.'

Great to have Fewster come back to the club, great boost for next season!

Justice- It's fantastic news, I'm happy that Boro made the mistake in letting him go as he is a capable player, in my opinion!

Sean Kavanagh adds to the signing of Bradley Fewster as Colchester sign up the full-back on a free.

Fulham defender Sean Kavanagh has joined on a free transfer after enjoying, like Fewster, a loan spell with the club last season. The Irishman, who made 41 starts in League One last season was a key part to a strong defence last season but also going forward, providing five assists and also earning a solitary goal.

The 23 year old made his Fulham debut back in 2014 and went on to make 14 appearances that season, however injury then ensured he missed the majority of the 2015/16 season. After a short spell at Mansfield near the end of the campaign, he was sent out on loan to Hartlepool for the season the next.

He played every single game bar one for Hartlepool as the club managed to survive the drop against all odds. His impressive performances then lead to widespread praise from Fulham boss Slaviša Jokanovi?, but he was ultimately loan listed once again.

Jokanovi? told us, 'I wish Sean all the best ahead of his move to Colchester. Sadly for him I just didn't feel there was a place for him within this squad. He would be competing with the likes of Ryan Sessegnon and I just don't think he would be able to fit into my plans. He is a top professional and a hard worker, so I am confident he will enjoy a good spell with the club.'

Doing some business! Hopefully the squad will hold his own.

De Magere- Hopefully they do as it'll be a difficult year for us - there's a huge gulf in finances between the likes of us and other clubs such as Stoke.

Sullay Kaikai has joined Colchester United from Crystal Palace for a fee of £375,000.

Sierra Leone international Sullay Kaikai has joined Championship side Colchester United for a fee of £375k. The 22 year old winger completed the move after being told he had 'no place' within the Palace setup after they were promoted from the Championship last season, but also due to a failed loan spell at Ipswich Town.

The deal is significant for Colchester as it's the first time the club has named a fee for a player for two years, previously all transfers had all been either free signings or loanees, in an attempt to 'save finances for future years,' so said chairman Robbie Cowling.

Kaikai came through the youth ranks at Palace in 2011 and was loaned out to then League One side Crawley in 2013 where he made five appearances but failed to score a single goal. The next season he dropped down a division, joining Cambridge on loan for the season as he made 25 appearances and enjoyed his time at the club, scoring five.

2015 proved to be a huge year for the winger, he impressed across two separate loan spells at League One Shrewsbury, in total making 27 appearances and scoring 12 goals, but also making his senior debut for his parent club as he came on at half-time for Jordan Mutch and then provided an assist in a 4-1 loss to Southampton.

Since however, Kaikai has failed to make an impact at Walsall and then Ipswich, only providing one goal and two assists in both his loan spells with the League One and Championship clubs, respectively, across a total of 34 games shared between the two loans.

Kaikai stated, 'I am pleased to be joining Colchester United. The future looks very bright for me and I know that I can improve a lot here. There are high ambitions and I am very keen to be a part of a club that seems to be moving in a very positive direction, you just have to look at how far it's come in the past couple of years.'

'I can't wait to get out on that pitch and show what I can do, I have a lot of potential to show and hopefully I can replicate the form I shown at Shrewsbury here, or perhaps even better.'

Splashing the cash on Kaikai! Very good additions to the squad so far, it'll be interesting to see what the final product of the team will be ahead of the new season!

Youve made some good signings for the level youre at and hopefully with a few more additions youre squad will be able to compete in the second tier!

Interesting to see if he matured and will step up at Colchester. Squad is coming along nicely for the tough season ahead.

Justice- I'm very happy with the trio brought in at the moment, hopefully we'll go into the season with a good squad!

Griffin- Hopefully! It's still all about survival at the moment.

De Magere- He should do very well, if my expectations live up to what I hope.

Midfielder Grant Leadbitter has left Middlesbrough to join fellow Championship side Colchester United on a free.

31 year old Grant Leadbitter has made the switch from Middlesbrough to Colchester on a free transfer this afternoon, after making just eight starts for the Teesiders last campaign. The midfielder claimed he was 'frustrated' with the lack of football he was given at the club and is 'delighted to be giving an opportunity at a club like Colchester.'

The versatile midfielder has enjoyed a successful career, playing for Sunderland and Ipswich as well as Middlesbrough, where he has played over 400 games for his three clubs, mostly in the Championship but also in the Premier League.

Leadbitter oversaw his previous employers promotion to the Premiership in 2016, where he was a key part to the success as Aitor Karanka led the side to second place finish with a 1-1 draw to Brighton on the last day, a game where 'Boro just needed to get a positive result in order to be promoted in place of their opposition.

Making just 14 starts in the Premier League, the veteran was unable to dislodge Marten De Roon from the starting eleven as he enjoyed a good season, something rare in what proved to be a disappointing year for the club. This earned a move back to the top flight with Burnley in a £6,000,000 move for the Dutchman.

Speaking of his move, Leadbitter said, 'I'm delighted to be given another opportunity in the Championship here at Colchester, one I'm very thankful for. Middlesbrough gave me a lot as a player and I thoroughly enjoyed my six year stint at the club - if I could turn back the clock I would. Sadly for me, I'm now 31 and I need to make the most of my final years as a footballer.'

'I simply wasn't going to be getting the regular football at Middlesbrough and for me, that was a huge shame. I was frustrated, but as a professional you have to keep your head up and carry on. You can't sit around and complain, instead I waited for my time and asked to be given the chance to move.'

'It was a difficult conversation to have, I loved my time at the club as I mentioned but ultimately, I want to continue to play regular football until my time does come and I have to hang up my boots. Some players are given the luxury of being able to play until they get into their early forties, so who knows what the future holds, I'm just going to make the most of it.'

Colchester have also completed the signing of George McEachran after his contract with Chelsea expired. The younger brother of Josh, who currently plays for Brentford, has agreed a four year deal and will be joining Wealdstone for the rest of the season on loan.

That is great experience that you've added, woah!

He knows what you need to survive in big leagues, great addition.

That could be the signing that really turns you into a Championship side! His experience will be HUGE!