Why Riley Harbottle couldn't turn down Hibs move as defender speaks on Lee Johnson pitch
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The 22-year-old centre-back put pen to paper on a three-year deal on Tuesday, becoming the Capital club’s seventh signing of the summer, as Lee Johnson looks to build on last season’s fifth-place finish.
Harbottle came through the ranks at Nottingham Forest but caught the eye last term during a loan spell with Mansfield Town in England’s League Two, where he worked under Nigel Clough, son of former Forest boss Brian.
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Hide AdSpeaking to Sky Sports from the club’s Ormiston training base, Harbottle said: “When I got the information from my agent I thought it would be stupid not to jump at the chance to join Hibs. I spoke to a few people before coming up here – when you look at the size of the club, it’s just something you wouldn’t turn down. Everyone’s been brilliant with me, made me feel really welcome, and I can’t wait to get to work.”
Johnson described the new recruit as having ‘a lot of potential’, telling the club’s website: “He’s a talented young player who we believe we can develop, and he adds strength in depth for us at centre-back.”
Harbottle paid tribute to Johnson’s pitch in convincing him to move to Scotland, and revealed the opportunity to compete in European football was another big pull factor.
He continued: “The manager’s been brilliant. From the first conversation I had with him, he really sold the club to me. I know we’re ambitious and we’ve got a lot of goals we want to achieve this season.
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Hide Ad“I’m a wholehearted player. If you look at my record last year I scored quite a few goals so I like to score goals, I’m aggressive in the box, and I’ll give everything for the club. The opportunity to play for Hibs is just one I couldn’t turn down and the chance to play European football really attracted me too. It’s really exciting; it’s something a lot of us aren’t used to. It’s going to be a challenge [getting to the group stages] but we’re definitely up for it.”
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