Monday 25 July 2016 13:55, UK
Celtic have confirmed the arrival of former Liverpool defender Kolo Toure on a one-year deal.
The Ivory Coast international joins the Scottish champions on a free transfer after leaving Liverpool when his contract expired earlier in the summer.
The 35-year-old will now be reunited with former manager Brendan Rodgers, the man who brought Toure to Liverpool originally, and the current Celtic boss said he is a perfect addition to his squad.
"I brought Kolo into Liverpool to add that bit of experience and help to the centre-halves there at the time," Rodgers told the club website.
"You saw from his impact there and in particular last season, he was a very important player for Jurgen Klopp towards the end of last season, playing in the Europa League final.
"He was outstanding in the big games for me when I was there. He looks after himself, he's a wonderful professional and he has good experience.
"With a lot of young players in our squad, he can really help them and he can be of great assistance for the likes of Scott Brown, who is a wonderful leader.
"But he needs support and help around him as well. It will be nice for Scotty to have someone behind him who has that real big-game experience. Kolo can do very well for us."
The move will be the first time Toure has played for a Scottish club and the first time he will represent a non-English club since 2002.
The former Arsenal and Manchester City centre-back played a senior role in the Liverpool squad as one of the most experienced players at Anfield, making 71 appearances in three years at the club.
Toure leaves England with two Premier League winners medals and three FA Cups to his name and will be hoping he can help Celtic to their sixth consecutive league title.
"I feel great.I feel really excited because it's going to be a new challenge for me. I've come to one of the biggest clubs in the world and it's a privilege for me to be here," said the Ivorian.
"I know a few friends who play football here and I know what the club has been achieving, winning a lot of trophies and playing Champions League a lot so that's something I'm looking at.
"I played with Brendan when he was at Liverpool and when we spoke about the chance for me to come here I was really happy because we know each other for a long time now. We've worked together and he's a top manager. For me it's a privilege to come and work with him again."
