Irish under-21 international Zack Elbouzedi has signed for English League One side Lincoln City ahead of the January transfer window, the club has announced, after compensation was agreed with Waterford.

Elbouzedi, who is understood to have attracted interest here at home from both Dundalk and Shamrock Rovers, had previously been in Britain with West Brom then Inverness Caledonian Thistle before returning home to play last year for Alan Reynolds’ side last season.

“He’s gone under the radar a little while playing for Waterford in the Irish League,” Lincoln manager Michael Appleton told the club website. “We see this as a little bit of a coup for the football club, there’s been a few clubs showing a lot of interest in him. He’s a very exciting young player.”

Elbouzedi says he was “delighted,” to sign up after spending a bit of time at the club and speaking to others about the manager. “I came over two weeks ago and really liked the place,” he said “I spoke to the manager, and there’s a really good vision for the club. I spoke to a couple of people at West Brom about Michael. They said he’s a great coach and will help me progress as a player.”