Brian Kidd strengthened his injury-plagued Blackburn Rovers squad for the fight against relegation yesterday by buying the Republic of Ireland midfielder Lee Carsley from Derby County for £3.375 million.
The 25-year-old agreed a four-year contract, taking Kidd's spending since he succeeded Roy Hodgson in December to £18 million. Carsley leaves a team with European ambitions for one in danger of the drop, but said he needed little persuasion to move to Ewood Park.
A £15,000-a-week deal, which almost doubled his wage, will surely have helped. But Carsley, who turned down late bids from Aston Villa and Everton, insisted it was ambition rather than financial incentives which convinced him to leave Derby, where he started as an apprentice nine seasons ago.
'People have spoken about the financial side but money has never motivated me one bit,' he said. 'Like a lot of people I have a family to worry about but I come from a very poor area of Birmingham called Sheldon where there is no money at all and I would be happy going back to live there any time.
'When I spoke to the new gaffer he did not mention relegation once and I don't think it is even likely that Blackburn will go down. It has never crossed my mind.
'There was the possibility of a European place at Derby but Blackburn are another club going places and I have not considered the difference in league positions. This is a massive club which won the league a few years ago.
'In my mind I thought they would have been pushing for Europe but they have had a lot of injuries and I think they are in a false position. The gaffer is very positive. He has told me he can make me a better player and I can't ask for any more than that.'
Blackburn's owner Jack Walker has indicated he is ready to fund more signings before Thursday's deadline, but Kidd hinted that Carsley would be his last buy of the season.
'I identified my targets early on and none has been a panic buy,' he said. 'We've been tracking Lee for some time and I know other clubs in the top five were interested in him. He's got a number of attributes. He will be terrific to have around the place, both with his ability and character. He's got a tremendous engine from box to box and an excellent range of passing.'