Turkish defender Alpay signs for Korean club Inchon
It said the two-year deal was worth one million dollars annually.
“I’m so delighted to join Inchon United and appreciate the warm welcome of all the staff on the team,” the website quoted him as saying at a signing ceremony in Inchon city hall.
“I would like to try my best to lead the newly-born team to the championship this season,” the 31-year-old added.
The website said Alpay, without a club since having his contract terminated by Aston Villa in the wake of the Beckham controversy, would join Inchon’s training base in the southern Turkish resort of Antalya at the start of February.
Newly formed K-League club Inchon are coached by German Werner Lorant, formerly of Istanbul club Fenerbahce, where Alpay used to play.
Turkey’s Sabah daily reported Alpay as saying he rejected other offers and decided to go to South Korea because of his experience there during the 2002 World Cup Finals.
Alpay was one of the key players in the Turkish team who finished third in the World Cup in South Korea and Japan.
He came under fire from the British media and English football fans after he taunted Beckham when the England captain had missed a penalty in the crucial Euro 2004 qualifying game.
