New U’s signing Danny Collinge is confident that his move to the Essex is the logical next step following five years in Germany.
Danny signed for the U’s after leaving VfB Stuttgart and feels he returns to England a more mature, rounded and developed player.
"This summer I took the decision to return to the UK and I feel that Colchester are a great fit for me," he told the club’s official website.
"It has helped me mature as a person and helped me footballing wise to learn from a new perspective, from tactics to sports science and everything involved in the game."
Danny was one of the forerunners for what is now a flow of English players trying their hand on foreign shores and he is not surprised to see so many giving it a go.
"In more recent years, a lot of English talent has gone abroad, given the opportunities that Germany and the other European leagues offer to play at a young age," he added.
"In Germany, the reserves play in a mens’ league, which is different to here, and it provides a good stepping stone for the young players. There is a real culture there of developing youngsters and that was something that appealed as a pull factor to come to Colchester.
"I really enjoyed my trial here, I was made to feel very welcome by the players and staff and I was impressed in what they did for me in such a short period of time."