Thu, 28 Oct, 2021
London: 2015 AFC Asian Cup winning captain Mile Jedinak has joined Aston Villa on a three-year deal as the club looks to regain its place in the English Premier League.
Jedinak makes the switch after five seasons, and 165 league appearances, at Crystal Palace, where he was recently removed as club captain by manager Alan Pardew.
Aston Villa suffered relegation to the Championship last season after 28 consecutive seasons in the top-flight and are chasing an immediate promotion under 2011-12 UEFA Champions League winning manager Roberto Di Matteo.
The 32-year-old’s spell with the Eagles was a highly successful one for player and club, with Crystal Palace winning promotion to the English Premier League in 2012-13 and reaching the final of the FA Cup last season.
Jedinak also won personal accolades during his spell; He was Palace’s Player of the Year in their 2012-13 promotion season, and won the award for AFC Asian International Footballer of the Year in 2014, before leading his country to AFC Asian Cup glory the following year.
He joins the likes of Brett Holman and Chris Herd as Australians to play for Villa in recent years, with 20-year-old midfielder Jordan Lyden a member of the current first team squad.
Australia begin the final stage of FIFA World Cup Qualifying against Iraq in Perth on September 1, before travelling to Abu Dhabi to tackle the United Arab Emirates five days later.