Charlton acquire Premier League defenders
League One side Charlton Athletic have completed the signings of Crystal Palace centre back Ryan Inniss and Chelsea left back Ian Maatsen.
Inniss, 25, joins the club on a two year deal with the option of another 12 months, while Maatsen, 18, signs on loan until the end of the season.
They become the 9th and 10th signings for the Addicks this summer and the 5th and 6th under the ownership of Thomas Sandgaard.
Manager Lee Bowyer emphasized the need to strengthen the backline and was pleased with his two new additions to the squad. On Inniss, he said: “It has been difficult as there are not many right-footed centre-halves out there but we have managed to get a very good one. Ryan is a winner, it is important when you have players like that at the back, and he’s a leader, an organiser and in that centre-half position that is what we were looking for.”
Thomas Sandgaard was also pleased to get the 6ft 5″ centre half through the door: ““It has been a busy few weeks but I am very pleased we have been able to strengthen the squad. Ryan is a player that Steve Gallen has been following for a very long time and he fits in with what Lee and Steve are trying to do, so we are very happy to welcome him to the club.”
On Maatsen, Bowyer said: “He’s a very exciting left-back. He’s ambitious [with the ball], very good in possession, he has great energy, great pace. I would say he is quite similar to Jay Dasilva, the way he travels with the ball and goes past people. He’s exciting and different to what we have.”
Having come through the youth ranks at Crystal Palace, Inniss only managed two appearances for the Eagles since signing a professional contract in 2013, both of which coming in the League Cup. He has had countless loan spells since 2013, with Cheltenham, Luton, Gillingham, Yeovil, Port Vale, Southend, Colchester, Dundee and last season for Newport County in League Two, making 29 appearances and scoring once.
Charlton will be Maatsen’s first taste of professional football since joining Chelsea from PSV Eindhoven. He has featured once for the Blues, also coming in the League Cup, The exciting Dutch full back follows in the footsteps of Jay Dasilva and Conor Gallagher, who both enjoyed impressive spells in SE7 from Chelsea, with Dasilva winning the club’s 2017/18 Player Of The Year award and Gallagher scoring six goals and providing two assists in 26 Championship matches last season.
