Melbourne Heart change name, sign Villa
Australian club Melbourne Heart have renamed themselves as Melbourne City Football Club.
They also signed Spain striker David Villa on a two-month loan on Thursday.
The A-League side were purchased by English club Manchester City in January and have put their connections to use by landing the former Barcelona and Atletico Madrid forward from US sister club New York City FC.
Villa, who is part of the Spain squad preparing to defend their World Cup title, will play for Melbourne from October to December before joining up with New York for the start of the MLS season.
Speaking to Melbourne City's official website, the 32-year-old striker said: "It’s very good for me in every sense. From a football point of view it’s the opportunity to play in a new league in a different country.
"Of course it will be ideal for me to get some competitive football in the period before the MLS season gets under way.
Marvellous experience
"I’m sure that playing for Melbourne City FC will be a marvellous experience."
Australia's football league has played host to several big names in recent years, including Emile Heskey, Alessandro del Piero and Shinji Ono.
Source: Melbourne City official website
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