Thursday 11 August 2016 07:20, UK
Former Everton striker Tim Cahill is set to play in his domestic A-League for the first time after signing for Melbourne City FC.
The 36-year-old Australian, who spent eight successful seasons with the Toffees, has joined Melbourne City on a three-year contract from Chinese Super League club Hangzhou Greentown.
Cahill is set to play for the first two years of his deal before joining the club's coaching staff in 2018.
"I am incredibly excited to have signed with Melbourne City and ultimately the City Football Group. There is real ambition and purpose here, qualities that are immensely important to me," said the former Millwall forward.
Melbourne City, sister club of Manchester City, finished fourth in A-League last season before losing to Adelaide United in the finals series of the competition.
Football Federation Australia's CEO David Gallop welcomed the arrival of Cahill, who is the country's record goal scorer with 47 goals in 91 appearances for the Socceroos.
"It's the biggest player signing in the League's history, it's a red letter day for the code," Gallop said.
"I think for many Australians when you think football, you think Tim Cahill.
"Scoring goals, celebrating by punching the corner flag, hopefully we are going to see plenty of that over the next couple of seasons, not only in the A-League but of course for the Socceroos on the road to Russia 2018."
However, Gallop refused to reveal what price City had paid Hangzhou for the veteran striker.
"Without putting a precise figure on it, I think it's a significant investment by the game, the biggest investment that the league has ever made in a player and that is, I think, appropriate for Tim Cahill," Gallop said.
"As I say, he's number one on our wish list and we've got him."
