Ipswich Town complete loan deal for England Under-18s star and Aston Villa forward Louie Barry previously at Barcelona
Paul Cook has bolstered his Ipswich Town squad on the eve of the Sky Bet League One season with a season-long loan deal for Aston Villa's highly-rated teenage forward Louie Barry.
The 18-year-old, who became the first English talent to be recruited by Barcelona for their famed La Masia academy when he joined from West Brom in 2019, is eligible for tomorrow's visit of Morecambe.
It was reported by Birmingham Live earlier today that the Suffolk club had been off competition from League One rivals Sunderland to secure his services with the England Under-18 international becoming the 11th summer signing at Portman Road.
The Sutton Coldfield-raised player can also operated as a winger and spent 10 years from the age of age in West Brom's academy before moving to the Spanish giants.
He made his debut for Barca's U19s in October 2019, scoring in a 6-0 victory over Ebro.
Barry returned to England in January 2020 when Aston Villa signed him for a fee reported to be around an initial 1m euros (£880,000).
He again netted on his debut as he came on to score the equaliser for the U23 side against Cardiff City.
Twelve months later he was selected in the first-team squad for the visit of Liverpool in the third round of the FA Cup.
He scored to level the game at 1-1, and earned plaudits from Reds boss Jurgen Klopp for his display at Villa Park.
In May he played a key role as Aston Villa’s U18s lifted the FA Youth Cup, beating Liverpool, who knocked Town out at the semi-final stage, 2-1 in the final.
In total Barry scored 20 goals in 26 games across Aston Villa's sides last season, including five goals and four assists in the FA Youth Cup campaign.
“It’s been a crazy few days and as soon as I found out Ipswich were interested, I wanted to make the move,” Barry told iFollow Ipswich.
“I felt the manager’s enthusiasm as soon as I walked in and I am really looking forward to working under him.
“The club made me feel wanted and you can tell it’s a club going in the right direction. I want to play my part and be involved.”
Meanwhile, Cook is delighted to have got the Villa hotshot into his squad for the 2021/22 campaign and believes it can benefit all parties.
“Louie is such an exciting player,” he told the club website.
“He really wants to play football and do well in a first-team environment. Our job is to provide him with a platform to build and also give him an opportunity to express himself.
“If it’s not tomorrow then he certainly will be involved on Tuesday in some capacity.”
Town are expecting a bumper crowd of more than 20,000 for the visit of newly-promoted Morecambe tomorrow (3pm). The match is all-ticket but there is still time to purchase a seat here.
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