Burnley equal record-transfer fee to sign Ben Gibson from Middlesbrough with Joe Hart deal close to being done

Gibson returns to the Premier League after leaving Boro for £15m, with Manchester City goalkeeper Hart expected to join him in the coming days

Ben Gibson watched Burnley's pre-season friendly against Espanyol after joining from Middlesbrough (Getty)

Burnley have sealed their first signing of the summer after equalling their club-record transfer fee to land Ben Gibson from Middlesbrough FC on a four-year deal.

The move for the 25-year-old is worth £15m, the same fee that Burnley paid Leeds United for striker Chris Wood in August last year, and sees the centre-back return to the top flight after a season in the Championship following Boro’s relegation in 2017.

“I’m absolutely delighted,” Gibson said. “It’s a big step for me. I’ve played for Middlesbrough for 15 years since I was a boy so it’s a huge step and one I’m really, really excited about.

“I’ve been to the training ground and met a few of the boys and the place seems like it’s certainly a club that’s on the up and certainly a club to be excited about playing for.”

With Burnley looking to build on their seventh-placed finish last season by booking their place in the Europa League group stage via a two-leg play-off against Istanbul Basaksehir and a final fourth-round qualifier, Gibson hopes to consolidate last season’s success to help the club push on and escape the relegation picture this season.

“The measure of a fantastic team is not to do something once, but to repeat that time and time again,” Gibson added. “I know that’s what Sir Alex Ferguson said about Manchester United.

Ben Gibson left Middlesbrough 15 years after joining their academy (Getty)

“Sean Dyche and the team and everyone here did such a fantastic job last year in finishing seventh and qualifying for the Europa League. Let’s hope this is a real, real good chapter in Burnley’s history and this is just the start of things to come.”

Burnley were the 19th Premier League club to make a signing this summer, but a second is expected to arrive sooner rather than later after Joe Hart was left out of Manchester City’s side that contested the Community Shield on Sunday. The England goalkeeper, who missed out on a place in Gareth Southgate’s squad for the World Cup following a season-long loan with West Ham United last term, had a medical on Friday and is expected to seal a permanent move to Turf Moor, having been told by Pep Guardiola that he is not part of his plans for the new season.

Joe Hart is set to leave Manchester City for Burnley (Getty)

With Tom Heaton still not fully fit from a calf injury and Nick Pope undergoing surgery to correct a dislocated shoulder suffered in the Europa League qualifier against Aberdeen last month, Hart is expected to feature in their trip to Turkey this week.