Sunderland have signed defender Sotirios Kyrgiakos on loan from German Bundesliga side VfL Wolfsburg until the end of the season.
The 32-year-old Greek international is Martin O'Neill's second acquisition of the January transfer window following the loan capture of Manchester City's Wayne Bridge.
The defender could make his Sunderland debut against Stoke this weekend and manager O'Neill told safc.com:
"Sotirios offers a real physical presence, coupled with a wealth of experience, which will be an undoubted benefit to us in the next few months.
"I'm delighted to welcome him to the club and I'm sure he is looking forward to the challenge of returning to the Premier League."
Primarily a centre-back, Kyrgiakos joined Wolfsburg from Liverpool last summer having made 49 appearances for the Reds during two years at Anfield.
Kyrgiakos began his career with Athens side Panathinaikos, spending two of his initial seven years in Greek football on loan at Agios Nikolaos.
After sealing the Greek domestic double with Panathinaikos in 2004, the 6'4" defender moved to Rangers in January 2005 where he would pick up both an SPL winners' medal and a Scottish League Cup winners' medal in his first season - scoring twice in the final.
With his Gers contract expiring, Kyrgiakos moved to German outfit Eintracht Frankfurt in summer 2006, spending two years with Die Adler before returning to the Greek capital for a season with AEK Athens.
Kyrgiakos moved to Liverpool prior to the start of the 2009-10 campaign before heading to Wolfsburg, where he has registered seven appearances this season.
The defender has been capped on 61 occasions by Greece and represented his country at Euro 2008 and the 2010 FIFA World Cup.
Log on to SAFC TV this evening for Sotirios' first interview as a Sunderland player.
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