OXFORD United have added to their attacking options with the signing of striker Agon Mehmeti.
The 27-year-old was a free agent after leaving Turkish side Genclerbirligi in the summer, so was able to sign until the end of the season despite the transfer window closing last week.
Mehmeti arrived in England at the start of the week and met U's boss Pep Clotet, who coached him at Malmo in 2010, on Tuesday.
The forward, who has scored 54 goals in 229 games during a varied career across Europe which has included Champions League appearances, is delighted to join United.
He said: “I’m very thankful and happy to be here for this opportunity.
“I was speaking to Pep and told him I wanted to play in England.
“I knew Pep from before, we had a chat and he said ‘come here’.
“I did some tests and there was no problem, so it was an easy decision.”
Despite having had a pre-season in Sweden, the plan will be to ease Mehmeti into action, so it may be a couple of weeks before his competitive debut.
But Clotet believes he will be a useful addition.
He said: “We got a call and obviously I knew him because he had played a lot of games in Sweden and Norway.
“I know him personally as well, he’s a good professional.
“When this situation came up I told him it might be a good idea to bring him here, assess him and see if he would like to come and help us.
“He was happy and then he came here and liked what he saw.”
Born in the former Yugoslavia, Mehmeti’s family moved to Sweden when he was a child and came through the youth ranks at Malmo.
He had two successful spells with the Swedish club, winning the top-flight Allsvenskan title in 2010 and again four years later.
It has seen him accumulate experience playing in European competition, featuring in the group stage of the Champions League in 2014 and 2015.
Mehmeti was capped for Sweden at under 19 and under 21 level, scoring four goals in 12 appearances before choosing to play for Albania, winning three senior caps in 2013.
In between the spells in Sweden he has spent time in Italy’s Serie B with Palermo and Novara, along with a loan to Olhanense in Portugal.
Since leaving Malmo for a second time last year Mehmeti joined Stabaek IF in Norway, before moving to Turkey in January.
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