Fulham have announced they have signed Besiktas winger Ryan Babel on a short-term deal until the end of the season.
Babel has spent the last two years in Turkey but returns to the Premier League for the first time since leaving Liverpool in 2011.
“My first impressions are good and I’m very excited,” he told the club’s official website. “I definitely have faith that Fulham can stay up. That’ one of the reasons that I’m here, to try and help that to happen. I’m ready to go, I’m excited and I can’t wait.”
Claudio Ranieri has moved for Babel in an attempt to boost Fulham’s chances of avoiding relegation to the Championship this season.
Fulham invested heavily in the summer to bolster their offensive options but only three teams have scored fewer goals than the Cottagers in the Premier League this season (20 goals in 22 games).
The west London outfit are over-reliant on Aleksandar Mitrovic, who has scored 40 per cent of their league goals this season, and Ranieri will hope Babel can ease the burden on the 24-year-old.
Babel’s performances for Besiktas over the last 18 months were even good enough to force his way back into the reckoning with the Netherlands national team.
The 32-year-old scored four goals in 12 league matches for Besiktas earlier this season, following on from 13 goals and six assists in 32 league appearances last term.
Fulham are screwed.