AFP

Japanese star Honda joins Dutch side Vitesse Arnhem

Brussels (AFP) – Former Japan international Keisuke Honda has joined Vitesse Arnhem on a deal until the end of the season, the Dutch club announced on Wednesday.

The 33-year-old last played for Melbourne Victory in Australia but left in June and also currently coaches the Cambodian national team.

In September, he made a plea on Twitter for either Manchester United or AC Milan to sign him, tagging the two clubs in a post saying “give me an offer”.

Instead, he will move back to the Netherlands, where he played for VVV-Venlo from 2008-2009.

“It’s been a while since I played football in the Netherlands. Hopefully the fans in the Netherlands still remember me,” he said in a Vitesse statement.

“Anyway, I will do everything to impress on the pitch.”

Vitesse, who sit fifth in the Dutch Eredivisie, said that Honda was waiting for a work permit but should join the squad after the international break, during which his Cambodia side visit Hong Kong on November 19.

Honda scored 37 goals in 98 appearances for Japan before retiring from international football after the 2018 World Cup, when he became the first Japanese player to score in three different editions of football’s showpiece event.

He has also previously played for CSKA Moscow and AC Milan in Europe.

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