Conor McGrandles believes moving to Charlton will allow him to kick on in the next stage of his career.
The 26-year-old midfielder, who attracted interest from Championship and League One clubs this summer, penned a three-year deal in SE7 to become the fourth signing of the Ben Garner era.
McGrandles arrives at The Valley on the back of an impressive two-year stay at Lincoln City, having played a vital role in helping the Imps to the League One play-off final in 2020/21 and regularly captained the side last term.
Watch CharltonTV's sit-down interview with McGrandles above, or read on for the full transcript…
Conor, welcome to Charlton. How does it feel to be an Addick?
“I’m absolutely delighted. It’s been a long time coming, so to finally get it over the line I’m really happy.”
You’ve spoken to the Manager Ben Garner. What has he said to you in those conversations?
“He has just told me about his style of play, the way he wants to go about things and it suits me down to the ground. I want to be in a team that moves the ball, attacks and ultimately enjoys playing football.”
With that in mind, what makes you a good fit for this Charlton side? What attributes can you add to the group?
“I’d like to think I’m hard working. Every game I give 100% and I think I have got good energy. I like to try and get the ball which is essential for this side, so I think I have all the attributes which can hopefully help the team do well.”
Obviously you were a free agent this summer. Was it quite a quick process coming here? Has it been in the pipeline for a while?
“It’s been in the pipeline for a while. It’s obviously a big decision for myself to make so I had to take my time and make sure I had assessed all my options on and off the pitch. I did that and I’m really glad I came to this conclusion.”
You’ve been out pitchside at The Valley. How excited are you to get out there as a Charlton player having obviously played here before with MK Dons and Lincoln?
“I’m buzzing. Again, that was another factor - me playing here and me seeing the stadium before. I’ve seen what it can be like at this stadium and I’m really buzzing to play here.”
You said you’ve got a couple of familiar faces in Alex Gilbey, Chuks Aneke and Diallang Jaiyesimi as well. How much will that help you to settle in and get to know the other lads as well?
“It will be brilliant. Obviously, Gilbey, Chuks and DJ are good characters. I know they will welcome me in as well as the other players. It’s going to be massive coming in and knowing people and it will help me settle in.”
For fans who perhaps haven’t seen you in action, what type of midfield player are you?
“I can do different things - kind of box-to-box or I can do a more deeper thing. But I would say probably more often than not they will see me trying to attack, trying to make things happen, trying to make myself a nuisance and just do well for the team.”
You arrive here following a successful spell with Lincoln. You came close to promotion and you regularly captained them last season… you must feel you can really add something to this Charlton team now?
“I like to think so. I’ve had, personally, a good few seasons and this is the right club for me to kick on and push myself to that next level again. Hopefully, I can bring a wee bit of leadership and a wee bit of quality which will be good for everyone.”
The lads have been out in Spain this week working hard on a pre-season training camp out there. We kick off pre-season on Friday against Kilmarnock. Will you be keeping an eye on CharltonTV and watching along for that one?
“It’s probably a good game for me because I watch a lot of Scottish football anyway, so it is perfect that it will be Kilmarnock and I’ll get to watch it. I’m really looking forward to seeing how the team plays.”
(Transcription by Alex Forrest)