Plymouth Argyle have signed the Welsh striker Will Evans from League One rivals Mansfield Town on a two-year contract, with the option of a further year. The 29-year-old joins Home Park for a fee that is understood to be around £400,000, add-ons included.
Manager Tom Cleverley said it was a deal he had wanted for some time. "I am thrilled. He's a player who has been on my radar for a long time. He wears his heart on his sleeve and we can improve him," he said. "He has scored 49 goals in his last three seasons, he comes in as a striker and fits in exactly with how we play. Everything about the signing makes sense. He gave us nightmares last season and we can get him cleaner in front of goal."
Evans scored eight goals in 45 League One appearances for Mansfield last season. He was among the goals against Plymouth too, opening the scoring in Mansfield's 2-0 win at One Call Stadium last October.
The signing fills a position Argyle had prioritised throughout the summer. They sold top scorer Lorent Tolaj to Bristol City earlier in the window for a fee in excess of £4m, less than a year after paying Port Vale £1.2m for him, and had otherwise added only goalkeepers and defenders since. Cleverley had called replacing Tolaj the club's top priority.