By Mark Heys
June 8 2007

Aston Villa midfielder Gavin McCann has signed for Bolton Wanderers subject to a medical and reportrs suggest that the former England cap could move to the Reebok Stadium for a fee in the region of £1 million .

The 29-year old had one year left on his Villa contract but the Midlanders decided to cash in on the energetic midfielder due to the impending arrival of West Ham's Nigel Reo-Coker.

Blackpool-born McCann began his career with Everton just over ten years ago and managed to make the breakthrough under the management of Howard Kendall as the Toffees struggled at the wrong end of the Premiership table.

Walter Smith's appointment at Goodison Park saw McCann hastily sold off to Sunderland and within his first season on Wearside he helped the club gain promotion to the Premiership as Division 1 Champions.

In just over four years at the Stadium of Light, McCann made over 100 appearances and won international honours earning his one and only England cap against Spain in 2001.

In the summer of 2003 he moved to Aston Villa following Sunderland's relegation from the top flight and came up against Wanderers in the Semi Finals of the Carling Cup where he both scored and was sent off in the second leg game at Villa Park for slapping his ex-team mate Emerson Thome.

During his time at Villa he has had a number of injury problems but has still managed to appear in and amongst the first team on a regular basis under
Martin O'Neill.

McCann was said to be keen on returning to the North West and a move to Bolton alongside ex-Villa team mate and fellow new recruit Jlloys Samuel seems the ideal solution.

Bolton manager Sammy Lee was delighted at the prospect of being able to add the experienced McCann to the Wanderers ranks. Speaking to the official site Lee says the player will provide good competition ahead of a hectic season.

"Gavin McCann is a positive signing for us. Gavin is an experienced campaigner who knows the Barclays Premier League inside out. He has all the attributes you need for the modern game - a good passing range, excellent touch on the ball and optimum energy levels to cope with the rigours of the domestic game and our European campaign. I want to bring in quality signings over the summer to add to our already excellent squad, and Gavin has quality in abundance.

"It is going to be a demanding campaign with the UEFA Cup and we need to have the right quality required to make a real fist of every competition we enter. My philosophy is to create a culture where all players are fighting for their places. Competition for places across the squad is my objective, which will create a healthy environment going into the new campaign."

WALKING DOWN THE MANNY ROAD WOULD LIKE TO WELCOME GAVIN TO BOLTON WANDERERS.