‘Premier League stature’ - Anis Mehmeti’s first words as a Bristol City player

Anis Mehmeti has promotion ambitions with Bristol City after making a club-record move from League One side Wycombe Wanderers.

The 22-year-old is the second signing of the January transfer window and the first on deadline day, with deals reportedly in the works for Luton Town’s Harry Cornick and Jake O’Brien from Crystal Palace, as well as a third bid being primed for left-back Jack Currie from Wimbledon.

Mehmeti has joined on a three-and-a-half-year deal and Wycombe say it is the largest fee they have received for a player. Nathan Tyson’s £650,000 move to Nottingham Forest in January 2006 was their previous record, and now that has been broken 17-years later.

The deal is structured with an upfront fee as well as additional payments based on Mehmeti reaching certain landmarks, which are usually appearances, goals, assists, as well as promotion. Gareth Ainsworth rated Mehmeti between £5m and £7m, but it is understood that City have paid nowhere near what the Chairboys boss wanted.

“I’m buzzing to be here,” said Mehmeti to the official club website. It’s a massive club and I can’t wait to get started.

"I want to win and I want to get promoted. This is a club with Premier League stature and I want to impose my mentality and worth ethic and have an influence straight away. I’m a creative player, I like to make things happen, score goals and most importantly I want to win.”

Mehmeti has already trained at the High Performance Centre with his teammates today with most of the legwork conducted over the course of Monday. The Albania Under-21 international has taken up the 11 shirt which was left vacant after Antoine Semenyo’s departure to Bournemouth.

Wycombe first-team manager Gareth Ainsworth said: “It’s a bittersweet day for us, losing an influential player from the team, and a fantastic young lad from our club, but it’s also a moment of real pride for everyone involved in Anis’s development at Wycombe Wanderers.

“We’ll be following Anis’s career closely and wishing him every success for the future, and I know that he’s destined for big things in the game if he keeps working hard.”