Lincoln City Announce 22-Year-Old On Four-Year Deal

Lincoln City have completed the permanent signing of exciting young goalkeeper George Wickens on a four-year deal.

The 22-year-old joins the Imps after spending his early career developing his game at Premier League Fulham.

Wickens went out on loan twice during his spell with the Cottagers, gaining valuable first-team experience at National League Wealdstone and Scottish Premiership side Ross County. He also has an international cap under his belt having been called up to the Three Lions’ U18 squad in 2019.

He said: “I’m absolutely buzzing. Lincoln City feels like the right place for me at the next stage of my development.

“You only need to look at the track record of the young goalkeepers the club have brought through in the past few years and how well they’ve gone on to do.

“A big reason for that is the trust that has been put in them. It’s a massive thing to have the club behind you because it breeds confidence and that’s how you get the best out of a player.”

Head coach Michael Skubala said: “George has all the attributes we look for in a goalkeeper and impressed us with his mentality and maturity in the recruitment and interview process.

“We feel that George has a really bright future ahead of him and we are excited to sign him ahead of other clubs. George has shown his character with his decision to leave Fulham in order to play regularly and forge his career as a No.1 goalkeeper.”

The move came despite the Imps already having signed two keepers this summer, Jamie Pardington and Zach Jeacock. They were due to compete for the spot of understudy to Lukas Jensen, but the Dane secured a move to Millwall last week.

Wickens was in attendance this afternoon as the Imps were held to a 0-0 draw by National League Oldham in their third pre-season friendly, having previously beaten Preston 1-0, and lost 3-0 to Leeds United.

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There was a time when Fulham felt Wickens was the man to take over in the sticks when he came of age. His displays for Ross County, including a record-breaking 19 saves in one game against Rangers, highlighted that.

However, his time has not come around, and now he has some big gloves to fill at the LNER Stadium. Jensen was the club’s player of the season last time out, and was far and away the best keeper in the division.

It will be interesting to see if Wickens is able to recreate the Dane’s success.