Subway Socceroos midfielder Aiden O'Neill has signed with Belgian Pro League side Standard Liege on a four-year contract.
On Friday, Melbourne City announced O'Neill's departure, to pursue an overseas opportunity and now the holding midfielder has secured a move to the 10-time Belgian champions until the end of the 2026/27 season.
O'Neill had been a vital cog in Melbourne City's midfield since returning in 2020, hitting new heights in 2022/23, and his impressive form coincided with a national team call-up in March, debuting against Ecuador in Sydney to become Socceroos Cap No. 629.
The 24-year-old later went on to help City clinch a third straight Premiership and fourth consecutive Grand Final appearance, finishing the recently concluded campaign with four goals and a further three assists.
It will be the second time O'Neill will embark for Europe having spent four years in England between 2014 and 2018.
Speaking about his decision to put pen-to-paper with Standard, O'Neill said: "It's going to be a very exciting step for me.
"I'm just absolutely buzzing to have it over the line and excited to get going.
"It's a really exciting league, you know, lots of good players playing there, and also progressing their careers from there.
"You can see that they're looking at Australian players now, and I think it's a great spot to be in, I'm just incredibly excited to start."
O'Neill also follows his club teammate Jordan Bos to the Belgian top flight, after the 20-year-old full-back completed a record-breaking transfer to KVC Westerlo last month.
He also joins a long list of Australian internationals to have plied their trades in Belgium, including the likes of Maty Ryan, Trent Sainsbury, Jason Culina, Josip Skoko, John Aloisi, Tony Vidmar, Paul Okon, Frank Farina and Subway Socceroos Head Coach Graham Arnold.
O'Neill is currently in camp with the Subway Socceroos and is a chance to feature against Argentina on Thursday night before linking up with the Belgian side, who last won the title in 2009.
Match details
Fans in Australia will be able to watch the Subway Socceroos take on Argentina live and free on Network 10 and live on Paramount+.
Date: Thursday, 15 June 2023
Venue: The Workers’ Stadium, Beijing, China
Time: 8.00pm local / 10.00pm AEST
Broadcast: Live and free on Network 10 and live on Paramount+