Former Portsmouth and Peterborough defender becomes Stevenage's third signing ahead of transfer window officially opening

Less than two weeks after the 32-year-old was released by Peterborough, following their defeat to Sheffield Wednesday in the League One play-offs, the former Pompey defender has agreed to join Stevenage on a free transfer.

No contract details have been released, while the deal is subject to EFL and FA approval, with the transfer window not officially opening until Wednesday, June 14.

However, Thompson is the third Boro signing that will be confirmed next week, following moves for former Gillingham midfielder Alex MacDonald and Wycombe midfielder Nick Freeman.

Stevenage are back in League One for the first time since the 2013-14 season, after manager Steve Evans guided them to a second-placed finish in League Two last term.

Thompson will provide valuable experience having racked up 349 league appearances for Swindon, Pompey and Peterborough.

Seventy-eight of those outings were for the Blues between 2017 and 2019, when he controversially left – also on a free transfer – in order to play Championship football.

The right-back achieved that with the Posh, for whom he played 131 games over the past four seasons. But he was surprisingly let go by the London Road outfit following their failure to return to the second tier via last month’s play-offs.

Peterborough had a one-year option on the defender but decided against it as manager Darren Ferguson seeks to freshen up his squad and lower its average age. Former Pompey players Dan Butler and Ben Thompson have been transfer-listed.

Following news of his switch to Stevenage, Thompson told Boro’s website: ‘I’ve had good discussions with the manager about what we are looking to achieve this season.

‘Having played against Stevenage numerous times, it’s always been a tough game. Now, I’m looking forward to being on the other side and seeing what we can achieve.’