West Bromwich Albion have signed Greece striker Georgios Samaras on a two-year contract following his release from Scottish champions Celtic, the English Premier League club said yesterday.

The 29-year-old former Manchester City and Heerenveen forward will compete with Brown Ideye, Victor Anichebe and Saido Berahino, who scored twice in the season opening 2-2 draw with Sunderland last week, for a striking berth at West Brom.

The tall, long haired Samaras played for Greece at the World Cup in June, scoring a dramatic stoppage time penalty to beat Ivory Coast and send his country through to the knockout stages for the first time.

“We’ve signed a player with vast experience and I’m delighted to welcome Sami to the club,” Albion’s head coach Alan Irvine said.

“He has played a lot of football at the highest levels – Champions League, European Championships and World Cups – and the feedback we’ve got on him, from people like (former Celtic manager) Neil Lennon, states he thrives on the big occasion.”

Samaras, who spent six years in Scotland with Celtic, will not be involved in this afternoon’s league game away to Southampton.

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