Singapore: Former Aston Villa and England midfielder Lee Hendrie has signed for Bandung FC in Indonesia's breakaway football league.
Hendrie, who spent a decade at the English Premier League club from the mid-1990s, has penned a two-year deal and is expected to make his debut for the Javanese club tomorrow.
"He will act as a link-man and second striker who will supply our forwards ... his presence will give us a lift," Bandung Chief Executive officer Mohammad Kusnaeni told Reuters yesterday.
"He will be a role model for other players at Bandung FC given his experience playing in the best league in the world."
Capped once by England during his Villa days, Hendrie later dropped down divisions. He became a free agent earlier this month when he was released from a short-term deal at League Two side Bradford City.
An FA Cup runner-up and Intertoto Cup winner with Villa, 33-year-old Hendrie's signing to play in the Indonesian Premier League (LPI) marks his first spell outside England and will be a boon to the new Asian league.
"I am proud to have the opportunity," Hendrie said at the LPI's offices in Jakarta.
Bandung, second bottom of the league with two defeats after two matches, aim to use Hendrie's star appeal to boost the growth of talent at the club.
