China captain Zheng Zhi was given the green light on Friday to start his career with Scottish giants Celtic after being granted a work permit.
The 29-year-old midfielder arrived in Glasgow on Thursday to sign a reported two-year deal. However, Zheng will not be able to play in Celtic's Europa League games after UEFA confirmed he was not registered in time.
Zheng has already played in Britain having spent three years at Charlton Athletic before leaving the club at the end of last season. "Zheng Zhi is a player I have tracked for some time," Celtic manager Tony Mowbray told the club's official website.
"He is a highly-regarded player and was a thorn in our side when he played against us at West Bromwich Albion," the coach went on. "He will significantly add to the squad with his quality and the fact he can play in a number of positions."
On Thursday, Soccer News in Beijing claimed that Zheng will be paid £10,000 pounds per week. "Celtic are a great club with a great manager. I'm so excited and looking forward to playing with Celtic. I'm very happy," Zheng told Scotland's Daily Record. "I know Tony from his time at West Brom and I really liked him then. He tried to sign me a year ago, so it's good for me I was able to do that now."
Zheng will be joining Japanese midfielder Koki Mizuno at the club and is arriving four months ahead of Korea Republic Ki Sung-Yong. He will be the third Chinese player to play in the Scottish Premier League.