Andre Gray: Watford sign Burnley striker for club record fee

Andre Gray made 32 Premier League appearances for Burnley last season as the club finished 16th

Watford have signed striker Andre Gray from Burnley for an undisclosed club record fee - thought to be about £18.5m.

The 26-year-old has signed a five-year deal with the Hornets, who previously had two offers rejected.

Gray was in the final 12 months of his contract with Burnley and had turned down a new deal at Turf Moor.

He scored nine goals last season, despite a four-game ban for homophobic tweets he sent in 2012.

He joined Burnley from Brentford for £9m in 2015 and was a key part of Sean Dyche's 2016 Championship-winning team.

Gray 'ready for the challenge'

"I had a fantastic time at Burnley, being there I achieved my dream of playing in the Premier League and we stayed up last year so I feel like I needed a new challenge," Gray said in a interview on Watford's social media.

"I've still got a lot to learn, so I feel like a new challenge has come at the right time and there's no better place than Watford."

Watford's previous record transfer was midfielder Roberto Pereyra, who joined from Italian champions Juventus on an undisclosed fee last August.

Analysis

BBC Three Counties Radio sports editor Geoff Doyle

Andre Gray would seem to be an ideal fit for Watford.

The Hornets have relied too much on Troy Deeney in the past 18 months and in Gray they get a man with Premier League goalscoring experience. He is a good age and his pace is something the current Watford squad lacks.

His spell at old rivals Luton is a negative but the majority of Hornets fans will not care too much about that.

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