Stockport County is delighted to reveal its fifth signing of the Summer, with former Chelsea and Leeds United midfielder, Lewis Bate signing a three year deal at Edgeley Park.
The England U20 international will join on a free transfer after three years at Leeds, having spent the second half of last season impressing whilst on loan at MK Dons.
A product of Chelsea’s Cobham academy, the 21-year-old spent 10 years with the Blues, captaining the side that reached the FA Youth Cup final in 2020. He made the bench for the first-team on three occasions under Frank Lampard and Thomas Tuchel, but turned down a new deal at Stamford Bridge in 2021 to join Leeds for a seven-figure fee, seeking a pathway into first-team football.
Having impressed initially with Leeds’ U23s side, the deep-lying midfielder was fast-tracked into the first-team under Marcelo Bielsa and made his debut for the Premier League side in an FA Cup tie against West Ham United. He made his Premier League debut with the Whites just a week later after coming off the bench, also against the Hammers.
In August 2022, Bate moved on loan to Oxford United in League One for his first taste of regular first-team football. He made 35 appearances during his time at the Kassam Stadium, twice being named as the club’s Player of the Month winner, before a hand injury cut his season short in March.
After spending the first half of last season back at Leeds, featuring for them in the Carabao Cup, Lewis then moved to MK Dons on loan in January. He quickly became a key figure for Mike Williamson’s side, featuring 22 times as the Dons finished 4th in League Two, before losing out to Crawley Town in the play-offs.
Highly coveted by clubs following his release from Leeds this Summer, the midfielder has now signed a long-term contract at Edgeley Park, becoming our fifth signing of the summer following the additions of Jay Mingi, Jayden Fevrier, Callum Connolly and Jack Diamond.
First-Team Manager, Dave Challinor said:
“Lewis is a player that we attempted to sign in January but it wasn’t to be. From that point, we’ve kept an eye on his situation and when we knew he was being released by Leeds, we immediately renewed our interest. We’ve had to be really patient as there was interest in Lewis from higher up, but thankfully our patience has been rewarded.
“For some time now, we’ve felt that our biggest evolution as a team would come from a ball playing midfielder that will not only receive the ball in tight areas but manipulate space and play forward, as well as driving forward when the opportunity presents.
“Lewis is fantastic at all of these things and will be of huge importance to our development. Personally, for him, playing in the Premier League and Championship is where he wants to get back to and we really feel he has every opportunity for that to be the case.”
Director Of Football, Simon Wilson said:
“This is a player we have chased hard to get since before January, and I’m delighted that we have finally got him. Lewis is a terrific footballer that we believe will really compliment the players we already have and can do everything we require from his position. His best years are ahead of him, and we undoubtedly will see some of those here at Edgeley Park.
