Rovers have continued their winter transfer window activity by confirming their second first-team signing, after the acquisition of Ben Brereton on New Years’ Day, with the capture of Middlesbrough winger and former loanee, Harry Chapman, on a permanent basis.
The 21-year old, affectionately known as ‘Starman’ around the club, due to a chant based off David Bowie’s famous hit, has permanently swapped the Riverside for Ewood Park after he was heavily courted by Rovers and Tony Mowbray, following his loan spell in the 2017-18 season, which was cut short due to successive hamstring injuries.
The pacey winger, who penned a 2-and-a-half-year contract with Rovers until June 2021, joins the club on an undisclosed fee, prior to his Middlesbrough contract running out, which would have forced Rovers into a potential tribunal, if a fee could not have been agreed, as a result of Chapman being 21-years of age.
Chapman, who cruelly only managed 16 games, 1 goal and 4 assists in all competitions for the Blues last season due to his injuries, left a lasting impression on everyone associated with Rovers due to his raw pace and talent that he displayed on several occasions during his game time. Although he was able to return to Ewood Park on the final day of last season to collect his promotion medal and celebrate with his teammates and the fans, Chapman didn’t have the prolonged impact that both he, and the fans would have been hoping for, as a result of the first hamstring injury that he picked up in the 0-0 draw away at Wigan Athletic in October 2017.
The England 2017 u-20s World Cup winner would, however, have been delighted to continue his run of consecutive promotions, which began in the second-half of the 2015-16 season. During that campaign, Chapman was able to aid Barnsley win both the EFL Trophy and the League 1 playoffs as they returned to the Championship after a 2-year absence.
Following on from that promotion, Chapman returned to Yorkshire in the red and white of Sheffield United, as he achieved his second promotion in as many years. His contribution of 4 goals in 14 appearances helped Chris Wilder’s Blades to mount a League 1 title challenge, which ultimately culminated in them lifting the title with 100 points and securing Chapman’s second consecutive promotion.
Eventually, the winger was able to make it a hattrick of promotions and increase an already impressive CV, due to Rovers’ promotion back into the Championship, at the first-time of asking.
After reacclimatising himself with his surroundings and participating in the obligatory photoshoot which involved some meddling from Danny Graham, the new signing sat down with the clubs’ media team to discuss his permanent return to Ewood.
“It’s lovely to be back. I’ve been trying to return since January last year and after a lot of waiting, it’s finally happened, so I need to thank the manager, the Chief Executive, the lads and everyone involved because they’ve all made me feel welcome again. Ever since I walked through the door in August 2017, everyone around the club made me feel welcome, the morale was high, the lads were great with me, and it was a brilliant environment to be a part of.
“The deal has been dragging on for a while, but that’s part and parcel of football. It’s been agonising not being able to tell anyone or to let the supporters know, but I’m back now ready to push on and repay the faith that has been shown in me. I have to thank the manager for bringing me back now, because he could have done it in the summer to save some money, but he decided to spend a little bit more and get me in now, which I’m grateful for.
“He’s (Tony Mowbray) probably the best manager I’ve worked for, I love his footballing philosophy and I love playing for him. Even though my loan spell was short and sweet, I tried applying what he had taught me back at Middlesbrough, but it wasn’t to be, hence why I’ve come back here. I definitely believe that I’ve got some unfinished business here, but injuries are part and parcel of the game. Hopefully, now that I’m injury-free and raring to go, I can finish what I started last season.
“My main goal when I joined last year, was to gain promotion and thankfully the lads managed to get the club over the line. The memories of being a part of the celebrations on the final day will stick with me and everyone else forever. It was a great occasion for the fans, our families and everyone involved with the club, so hopefully we can continue our journey this year. I can’t thank the supporters enough for all the messages on social media because they really mean a lot.
“To know that I have the backing from the fans is amazing and vitally important for me, because the fans will know that I will give my all for them on the pitch. The support means so much to me, so hopefully it can continue.
“Returning to a familiar setup makes settling in a lot easier, because everyone already knows what I’m like as a human, so I don’t have to go through and introduce myself to everybody again, which makes my life a lot easier.
“I didn’t have the best of years in 2018 due to the injuries, but hopefully I can now put that all behind me and crack on trying to get myself up to speed in order to get out onto the pitch in-front of our amazing supporters.”
After Chapman spoke to the media, it was his manager’s turn to reflect on the deal, as Tony Mowbray offered his reaction on signing the youngster.
“Harry’s got the key attributes that will be important in helping our team move forward. His pace on the transition is unbelievable, which allows him to beat defenders and create opportunities for us, whether for assists or goals.
“He’s still only young at 21 years of age, but he hasn’t played as much football as he should have or maybe would have liked in his career. I like the human and footballing qualities that he brings to our side, which is why we’ve brought him back here. I work with him every day and I know how his personality is and that he’s capable of integrating himself with the group again.
“The key now, is to use his attributes at the right moments. He needs to do a lot of physical work in order to prepare himself for training and for matches, so I don’t think we’ll see him in action for us, for a while. I don’t think he’s even fit enough to go out on loan due to the lack of playing time he’s had at Middlesbrough. We will be getting him ready for the intensity to play for us.
“I’m delighted he’s here and here for the long-term. We shouldn’t rush him, in order to give him the best possible chance at contributing to his maximum.”
