Kyle Lightbourne and Shaun Goater were both at Bradford City’s ground to watch Nahki Wells’s last match with the club just after Christmas.

Wells suffered a tight hamstring in that match and went off in the first half against Swindon Town. He transferred to Huddersfield Town a week ago for an undisclosed fee of more than £1.3?million.

The two former England professionals got to see at first hand the impression Wells made on the Bradford fans, who were disappointed to see the 23-year-old move to one of their Yorkshire rivals.

“They started the game well but they missed [Wells] when he went off and it ended up 1-1,” Lightbourne said. “It was unfortunate he went off injured, but we managed to get up there to see him play.”

Lightbourne and Goater drove about 50 minutes up from Manchester, where Goater is now living, and were able to speak briefly with Wells after the game, wishing him well in his career.

“Shaun got the tickets from the Bradford manager [Phil Parkinson] who he knows quite well,” Lightbourne said. “He [Nahki] didn’t know we were coming to the match.”

Lightbourne, who was one of Walsall’s top players before leaving to join Premier League side Coventry City for a fee of £400,000 in 1997, feels the move to Huddersfield will be a good one for Wells.

“It is probably not the club that everyone was looking at, but his agent or whoever is representing him probably spoke to a couple of other clubs and it all depends on how they sold it to them.

“Without me knowing, I would say that Huddersfield probably said that he has a pretty good chance of playing week in, week out. Career-wise, it is probably the best decision for him because when you are used to playing every week, one of the worst things is being a substitute for a long time and then you lose a bit of rhythm.”

It was as a substitute on his debut last Saturday against Millwall that Wells announced his arrival at Huddersfield, 15 miles from Bradford, in spectacular fashion, scoring the winning goal in the last minute.

“As well as endearing himself quickly to the Huddersfield fans, Wells’s value will certainly rise if he scores regularly in the Sky Bet Championship.

“Scoring within your first couple of games for your new club is very vital,” Lightbourne said. “It bides you time, everybody instantly accepts you and makes life a lot easier for you. When you go to a new club, ideally you want to score within your first three games; it gives you the chance to settle down.

“When I went to Stoke, it took me five or six games to get off the mark. This gives him an opportunity to settle in right away.”

Lightbourne understands the emotional attachment Wells had to Bradford, who became a hero to the fans in only two years at the club.

“You get attached to people, you know those at the club think highly of you, but when you go to a new club you have to win the fans over,” Lightbourne said.

“He’s part of history with Bradford. They made it to a major cup final and that team will be remembered for ever.”

Huddersfield travel to West London tomorrow to meet Queens Park Rangers, one of the clubs reported to have shown interest in Wells last summer, and the Bermudian, who has scored 16 goals this season, is in line for his first start for the club.

“I wouldn’t be surprised if he starts or the manager has him as a substitute again,” Lightbourne said. “I think the manager is in a good position because he knows he can come off the bench and have an impact.

“The fee, about £1.3?million, is probably the highest fee paid for a player coming from League One.

“It’s a good price Huddersfield bought him for and they can make money off him if he does well.

“They are just five points off the play-offs and if they put a good run together, it can all change very quickly.”