Georginio Wijnaldum is officially a member of Newcastle United after weeks of speculation linked the Dutch midfielder with the Tyneside club.
He becomes Steve McClaren’s first signing as boss and will reportedly cost the Magpies about $23 million.
[ REPORT: El Shaaraway close to Monaco move ]
The transfer fee is the largest paid for a player by Newcastle under the ownership of Mike Ashley, who has fallen out of favor with the supporters for his stingy attitude and unwillingness to spend for top talent.
PSV Eindhoven won the Eredivisie title with Wijnaldum as captain last season, and the midfielder will now look to bring that winning attitude to St. James’ Park.
WATCH: @GWijnaldum's first interview as an #NUFC player is about to go live on nufcTV. Here's a snippet...https://t.co/UenfSqnHpK
— Newcastle United FC (@NUFC) July 11, 2015
The 24-year-old already has nine seasons of top flight experience, starting his career with Feyenoord before spending the past four seasons with PSV Eindhoven in his native Holland. He also represented the Netherlands at the 2014 World Cup.
[ RELATED: Three things we didn’t learn from the USMNT’s Gold Cup win over Haiti ]
McClaren was delighted with the signing, finally inking his top target to a deal, and talked on how Wijnaldum’s skills as a box-to-box midfielder and strong character will help with his plan to turn around the club.
Last season, Newcastle finished 15th in the Premier League just four points clear of the drop after a disastrous end to the season saw the Magpies lose 10 of their final 13 matches. John Carver was sacked and McClaren was given the reigns to lead the club back up the table.