West Ham signs right-back Ryan Fredericks

West Ham made right-back Ryan Fredericks the first signing under Manuel Pellegrini on Tuesday, signing the 25-year-old on a free transfer.

Fredericks makes the switch to east London on a four-year deal after making 100 appearances over three seasons with Fulham including a stellar 2017-18 campaign where the Hammersmith-born defender missed just two Championship fixtures.

"It’s amazing for this deal to finally happen," Fredericks said. "I know we’ve been speaking about it for a while and trying to get things in place and finally, we’ve got it over the line. I’m just buzzing to be here."

With Pellegrini set to take the helm at the London Stadium, the Chilean sounds elated to inject some youth into a backline that had Pablo Zabaleta laying claim to first-choice right-back duties last season. "He has good experience, with more than 150 senior appearances already but, at 25, he is still a young player with his best years ahead of him," Pellegrini offered.

A Tottenham youth product, Fredericks was one of three Fulham standouts to make the PFA Team of the Year alongside Ryan Sessegnon and Tom Cairney and played a vital role in the west London lot's return to the top flight after a four-year hiatus.