Shrewsbury Town: Sam Clucas’ age does not concern me - Dave Edwards

He has had a fantastic career and played at all levels having come through the non-league way in the early stages at Hereford having left Lincoln.

He has played for some big clubs in Hull, Swansea and Stoke, including a spell at the highest level in the Premier League, playing 66 games.

Clucas has that little bit of quality that Michael Appleton will really appreciate. The set-piece quality will be excellent. He has a lovely left foot.

He is creative, but most importantly, he will be able to handle the ball in tight areas, which we know is the way the Town boss wants to play, so it fits the bill from that perspective.

I do think what he will add off the pitch is going to be vital. Shrewsbury probably lacked senior experienced players last season, which was one of the reasons they struggled. It is an area the club have needed to address and Clucas will bring that in abundance having made just under 500 professional appearances throughout his more than 15-year career.

He knows what it takes to be a top professional, and while Salop are trying to develop their youth players, having someone like him who they can look up to, and who they can aspire to be like, is vital for any team that wants to bring through youngsters.

As a player, he will be desperate to prove a point that he can still do it at his age.

If you look back over the last couple of years, he played quite a lot at Rotherham in the Championship, but last year it was a bit stop-start. He was at Oldham for a while, and then he moved on to Lincoln for the second part of the season.

If you look at the situation during his time at the LNER Stadium, he was there on a short-term deal and they had a huge number of midfielders. So there will be various reasons why he was not playing. I don’t believe it was through injury, so coming to Town after a season where he has not played a lot of football can again be a positive.

In football, it is miles in the legs rather than your age. Coming off the back of that, hopefully, his body is in a good place and he will be able to perform at a level because, even at the age of 34, he will be an excellent addition.

Director of football Micky Moore has coached him before, so he will know him really well and know the type of character he is.

Two years is not that long of a contract, it is not like they are giving him a five-year deal. To get him at the club he would need to have a bit more security than one year. I remember when I signed back, I felt like I needed at least two years, and even more so for Clucas who will have to move to the area.

We have really missed those leadership qualities with someone to set the standards in the dressing room and help players understand the importance of a winning mentality.

When you get loan players into the football club, you have to make sure that someone is there to hold them accountable, as it can be quite easy for them to lose games and not be too bothered as they know they are going back to their parent clubs at the end of the season.

His arrival will help Town build that dressing room synergy, but you have to have experience and be well-respected to do that. Clucas fits the bill perfectly.