West Bromwich Albion announced the signing of veteran goalkeeper Ali Al-Habsi on Thursday.

The 37-year-old was a free agent, after spending the past two seasons playing in Saudi Arabia for Al Hilal.

The experienced shot-stopper has spent the past week training with West Brom and has now joined the club on a deal until the end of the season.

Al-Habsi is a name that most West Brom fans will be familiar with. The goalkeeper has spent most of his career in England, playing for the likes of Bolton Wanderers, Wigan Athletic and Reading.

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He is the tenth player to join West Brom since Slaven Bilic took over as head coach earlier this summer and while most fans will probably fail to get too excited by his arrival, he could turn out to be a very shrewd addition.

First of all, he is still a very good goalkeeper. Bilic will know all about his quality having seen him play against his side while he was managing in Saudi Arabia last season and should know how to get the best out of him.

Al-Habsi has got plenty of experience in English football too and will know exactly what to expect from the Championship.

In his latest season in England, Al-Habsi kept 17 clean sheets and won the Player of the Season award at Reading for the second successive campaign, which shows that he is still good enough to make an impact at this level.

Even if he does not play that many games, Al-Habsi is still a big personality and it is important to have those kind of characters in the dressing room.

Not only that, but the other goalkeepers at the club will really benefit from training alongside him. They will be able to learn a lot from his experience and expertise.

Sam Johnstone will most likely remain the first-choice goalkeeper at the Hawthorns this season, but Al-Habsi is an excellent back-up option and his arrival at the club will increase competition within the squad.

Jonathan Bond has only played a handful of games at this level, but Al-Habsi is extremely experienced in the Championship.

Johnstone will know that he will have to deliver consistently good performances to keep his place in the team and this should help him to improve.

You can understand why some West Brom fans are a little bit surprised by the signing of Al-Habsi, but it could turn out to be a masterstroke from Bilic.