Fernando Amorebieta agrees to Fulham deal

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Fulham have agreed a four-year deal with Athletic Bilbao defender Fernando Amorebieta.
The Venezuela centre half was strongly linked with a switch to Arsenal but will instead move to Craven Cottage when his contract expires in the summer.
He rejected a five-year contract extension with a €2million signing on fee and is said to have snubbed Everton and Zenit St Petersburg, too.

Deal: Fernando Amorebieta (left) has agreed to sign for Fulham
The 28-year-old has made more than 250 appearances for the club during his eight years in the team and his loss will be viewed as a blow.
Bilbao are already losing star striker Fernando Llorente on a free transfer to Juventus in the summer.
Fulham recently tied down central defender Brede Hangeland, who could also have left in the summer, with a two-year extension.

Impressive: Amorebieta played well last season against Manchester United


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http://bleacherreport.com/articles/1604 ... ew-signing

According to Spanish newspaper Voz Populi, Athletic Bilbao defender Fernando Amorebieta has chosen to sign for Fulham this summer and spurned the offer of a better contract to stay in the Basque country.

The news was also circulated by ESPN's David Cartlidge on Twitter:


Fresh from a season in which Athletic reached two cup finals, boasted stars by the names of Javi Martinez, Fernando Llorente and Iker Muniain, the club have slumped—badly.

Martinez left for Bayern Munich, Llorente attempted to force a move away and was banished from the starting XI and Muniain's dip in form has been nothing short of alarming.

The latest blow, it appears, will be the loss of Amorebieta via free transfer to Martin Jol's Fulham this June.

There were rumours his representatives were in talks with Arsenal earlier in 2013 (via Sky Sports), but it appears a different London club will welcome the Venezuelan international.

With fresh defensive blood arriving at Craven Cottage, let's check in on their reported new signing.

Amorebieta is a solid, capable central defender who will fit Jol's side very well on paper.

The transformation in his game under Marcelo Bielsa has been dramatic, and while his form has been up and down this season, he has developed into a very enticing prospect for Fulham fans.


Amore and Falcao battle in the 2012 UEL final
Scott Heavey/Getty Images
He's big, strong and good in the air. At 28 years of age, he arrives as a finished article ready for immediate deployment.

Bielsa's policy of chopping and changing between a two-man and three-man defence has led to him becoming increasingly versatile and mobile, while his positional awareness took a distinct turn for the better in the 2011-12 season.

Playing out from the back is a big strong suit for him, having learned from the best in Martinez, so Jol's dreams of playing good football through the middle will be helped enormously through this acquisition.

In the UEFA Europa League this season, Amorebieta averaged an impressive 68.3 passes per game with an 83.2 percent completion rate.

The only questions remain over his rash nature. Bielsa utilises a high-energy system that sees players move around a lot, but Amore does have a tendency to make rash moves in the wrong directions.

It can lead to him leaving some pretty big holes in the defensive line at times, and he's usually good for one red card per season.

Taking everything into consideration, Fernando is a great free signing for Fulham.

He will aid Jol in playing how he really wants to play while providing presence and much-needed fresh, younger legs in defence.