Golden Jaguars defender Matthew Briggs has signed a two-year deal with Vejle Boldklub FC, one of the most successful clubs in Denmark.
Briggs, now 29, was once the youngest player to ever feature in the English Premier League with Fulham FC. This latest deal will now see him compete in the Danish Superliga, the top pro-league in Denmark.
The club said Briggs has been on the training ground since the first week of the summer start and participated in all the pre-season matches.
Briggs, who first played for Guyana’s senior national team in 2015, has represented England at the various youth age groups, from Under-16 through to Under-21.
Briggs, who played 14 matches in the NordicBet LIGA for Danish side HB Køge last autumn, said he was happy to sign with Vejle Boldklub.
“The stay in Denmark last year was good for me in terms of football, and I played some of the best in my career. I like the country and football, so when a promotion team for the 3F Superliga wanted to see me, it was just to say ‘yes,” Briggs said.
He added, “Vejle seems like a good football club, and the team looks exciting. There are many young players who draw promising, but also a tribe of experienced players who can help the team and I have got a good impression of my new teammates. I have built up some experience throughout my career, but I dream of much more with my football, and the Super League is a good league.”
“My shape is not one hundred percent where it should be. I still have to build on after eight months without quite a few fights. I signed with Dartford in March, but soon after, English football closed down and since then I have only reached two games for them. The last few weeks of training have benefited me, but I can still get fitter. Vejle seems like a great city, and even though we have not played in front of our fans yet, I sense that there is a lot of support in the city. I look forward to seriously starting in my new club and to meeting our fans.”
Jacob Krüger, technical manager at Vejle Boldklub, spoke about the approach of the left-footed defender.
“We got a good impression of Matthew when he played in NordicBet LIGA last autumn and among other things played a strong match against us. The image of a defender who has good skills with the ball and has good conditions physically, he has substantiated during the last few weeks stay in Vejle. He has been used on the left back, and here he has shown that he can also bid. Matthew is an experienced player who comes with matches at all levels in the English league system,” Krüger said.
“Matthew can be used both on the back and as a left midfielder, and with the approach we get more options in the back chain. With the signing of the contract, we once again add strength in the air to the squad, and then we have also found a defender with speed, which he has shown in several of the matches already, where he has excelled in the field. We look forward to having Matthew in the coming seasons and welcome him to Nørreskoven.”
Born in London, Briggs grew up at Fulham FC’s academy, where he came forward early and made his Premier League debut as early as 2007. Back then as the youngest player in PL history, but a record that has since been broken.
In the years that followed, he was hired out several times, and he first broke with the childhood club in 2014, where he switched to Millwall.
It became twelve months on “The Den” and since then Briggs has been owned by several different clubs before he showed his worth in Danish football last autumn.
He was born and raised in England, but represents in the national team context Guyana, where he has played 10 international matches.
Briggs has chosen jersey number 30 for Vejle Boldklub.
