West Bromwich Albion have bolstered their attacking options after completing the free transfer signing of Greece international Georgios Samaras.
The 29-year-old has spent the past six years in Glasgow, where he has helped Celtic to four Scottish Premier League titles, two Scottish Cups and one Scottish League Cup. This followed a less than successful two-year stint in England with Manchester City, who paid Heerenveen £6million for his signature in 2008 but failed to get the best out of his ability.
Samaras, who scored just eight times in 54 league appearances for the Blues, now has another chance to prove his quality in the top-flight, after he penned terms on a two-year deal at the Hawthorns. Although he won’t be available for the trip to Southampton on Saturday, Baggies boss Alan Irvine believes the Greek ace will soon be proving his doubters wrong.
“We’ve signed a player with vast experience and I’m delighted to welcome Sami to the club,” he told the official club website. “He has played a lot of football at the highest levels – [UEFA] Champions League, European Championships and World Cups – and the feedback we’ve got on him, from people like Neil Lennon, states he thrives on the big occasion.
“He will certainly play in plenty of big occasions in the Barclays Premier League. Georgios has played in big games for a Celtic team that have often had a lot of the ball and have had to work hard to break the opposition down. But he has also shown another side to his game in other matches when they haven’t seen as much of the ball possession.”
Samaras, who scored 73 goals in 249 outings for the Bhoys, will now battle for a place in the Albion side with £10million club record signing Brown Ideye, Victor Anichebe, and Saido Berahino, who scored both goals in the 2-2 opening day draw with Sunderland. He arrives at the Hawthorns with 78 international caps, from which he has nine goals.
Albion fans, what do you think of Samaras? Will he prove to be a good signing? Will he even get in the team? Get involved in the discussion below!
