Man City keeper: Why I chose Pompey over Town
Manchester City keeper Gavin Bazunu, shown in action for Rochdale last season, claims he decided to join Portsmouth ahead of Ipswich Town - Credit: PA
Manchester City keeper Gavin Bazunu has claimed he joined Ipswich Town's League One rivals Portsmouth on loan ahead of the Blues because of the style of football they play.
The 19-year-old Republic of Ireland international says he had plenty of interest before opting to head to Danny Cowley's Pompey on a season-long loan.
But it was Portsmouth's preference for playing out from the keeper, a style similar to parent club City, which swayed him.
Town, of course, have signed Vaclav Hladky from Salford to be their number one stopper in the upcoming season.
The Blues are known to have shown significant interest in Dundee United stopper Benjamin Siegrist this summer, as well as departing Charlton keeper Ben Amos, with the latter ultimately joining Wigan Athletic.
Gavin Bazunu is a Republic of Ireland international - Credit: PA
Bazunu told the Portsmouth News: "I spoke to Danny (Cowley) on the phone a couple of times before I made the decision, he said all the right things to me.
‘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.
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"For me, I have a desire to play – and play good football.
Ipswich Town have signed goalkeeper Vaclav Hladky from Salford City - Credit: ITFC
"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."
