Dutch international striker Patrick Kluivert has signed for Newcastle United. He has put pen to paper on a three-year deal after being told by Barcelona in May he could leave the club despite having another year to run on his contract.
Kluivert, who will wear the number 11 shirt vacated by Gary Speed is delighted to have finally secured a move to the Barclays Premiership.
He said: "It feels really good. It's a dream come true. I always wanted to come to a top club in England and today is the day.
"If you are a striker, it gives you a good feeling if you can play alongside Alan Shearer. He's a striker with a lot of experience and you can learn very many things from him.
"Last year, Newcastle ended fifth, and the most important thing is to bring the club a little bit higher if it's possible and I think we can do well also
in the Champions League."
Kluivert's relationship with former club Barcelona soured and he found himself confined to the bench for Holland's Euro 2004 campaign. However, he has scored 133 goals in 278 appearances in club football for Ajax, AC Milan and Barca and an impressive 40 in 79 games for his country.
The Dutchman continued: "The last year at Barcelona wasn't a top year, but that was because I had an injury and lost my position. But now I'm 100 per cent and that's a different thing.
"If you're a striker with the status I have, it's normal that the pressure is like this."
Kluivert became United's second summer capture after teenager midfielder James Milner, and added further firepower to a squad already containing Shearer, Craig Bellamy and Shola Ameobi.
Manager Bobby Robson knows he will have a tough job to keep all his strikers happy - Shearer has already said he hopes to play in every game - but is delighted with the men at his disposal.
He added: "They're all happy to be at Newcastle and all we want is for players to be happy at Newcastle. You get injuries, you get many matches - you're playing Saturday, Wednesday, Saturday, Tuesday, Sunday - you're going all the time.
"It's very difficult for players to play all the time every game - we ask too
much of players all the time. But it does give me, with illness and suspension and injuries, a choice of what to do as the big games come thick, fast and heavy."
