Kazenga LuaLua: Hartlepool United sign veteran former Newcastle, Brighton and Sunderland winger

Now 33, LuaLua has been training with Pools for some time and arrives to add another attacking option to Lennie Lawrence's squad.

Having come through the ranks at Newcastle, he made his Premier League debut as a teenager in January 2008.

A series of loan spells followed, first to Doncaster and then to Brighton, where he spent three separate stints.

LuaLua impressed in East Sussex and became famous for his trademark double backflip celebration.

However, his progress was halted when he broke his leg in a game against, ironically, Pools in November 2010.

The wideman returned to Newcastle as Brighton won promotion to the Championship but re-signed for the Seagulls in the summer.

He went on to spend the next seven years with the club and made a total of 183 appearances, scoring 22 goals, as Brighton were promoted to the Premier League.

Spells at Sunderland, Luton and Queens Parks Rangers have followed before stints overseas in Turkey and Greece.

He returned to England to sign for League One side Charlton but made just four appearances before his release in May.

Less than a month before his 34th birthday, LuaLua arrives to add depth, competition and experience to the Pools squad having impressed during a spell training with the side.

"I'm delighted to be here and I can't wait to get started," he said.

"I've been training over the last few weeks and the lads have made me feel very welcome.

"I'm excited to be involved now and can't wait to get out onto the pitch."

Meanwhile, manager Lennie Lawrence was delighted to have secured LuaLua's signature having been impressed with him during his time training with Pools.

He said: "Kazenga has been with us for quite a while and he'll certainly bring an impact to the team.

"He's looked good in training and hopefully, with some game time under his belt, he can become a valuable player for us."