Glenn Whelan and Chris Samba: Aston Villa sign Stoke City midfielder and experienced defender

Glenn Whelan was a member of the Stoke City side beaten 1-0 by Manchester City in the 2011 FA Cup final

Aston Villa have signed midfielder Glenn Whelan from Stoke City for £1m and experienced defender Chris Samba on a free transfer.

Whelan, 33, who has been capped 81 times by the Republic of Ireland, has signed a two-year contract.

Samba, also 33, was a free agent after leaving Greek side Panathinaikos in January and has signed a one-year deal after spending pre-season with Villa.

He previously spent five years with Blackburn and also had a spell at QPR.

The pair join Chelsea centre-back John Terry, Manchester United goalkeeper Sam Johnstone and Hull City full-back Ahmed Elmohamady in moving to Villa Park this summer.

Whelan made 336 appearances for Stoke after arriving from Sheffield Wednesday for £500,000 in January 2008.

He scored six goals, including a 90th-minute equaliser at Villa Park in 2009.

Samba scored 18 goals in 186 appearances for Blackburn after joining from Hertha Berlin for a bargain £450,000 in January 2007.

But he spent only six months with QPR, rejoining Anzhi Makhachkala for £12m in July 2013 after signing from the Russian side for £12.5m the previous January.

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