Out of contract at the club that saw him turn his career around, Greek striker Georgios Samaras is going to take another chance at proving himself in the Premier League.
The 29-year-old, 6-foot-4 attacker is officially no longer a Celtic attacker, joining West Bromwich Albion on a free transfer. Samaras will join a Baggies attack that added Brown Ideye and Craig Gardner over the summer, and got a pair of goals from Saido Berahino in a 2-2 opening weekend draw with Sunderland.
A fixture on the Greek national team, Samaras scored the game-winner in a 2-1 win over the Ivory Coast in group play at the World Cup. Overall, he’s scored nine goals in 78 caps for Greece and netted 53 times in 179 matches for Celtic.
However his name will ring the wrong bells for Manchester City fans, who sometimes booed the high-profile signing from Heerenveen. Samaras scored just eight times in 54 Premier League matches for City, and complained about being used as a left midfielder (a role he adapted to when needed at Celtic).
West Brom manager Alan Irvine seems to see him as a striker:“We have now got four strikers with different qualities who can be used in different ways,” added the Scot.
“That’s great for us, because we need to have flexibility, the option to approach games in different ways and cover for injuries.
“I’m absolutely delighted with the four strikers we have.”
There will certainly be less pressure on Samaras than the load heaped on his shoulders in his last Premier League stint, and he could be a big factor for the Baggies attack. If Ideye can deliver, perhaps West Brom’s nine summer signings can boost their hopes for long-term life in the Premier League.