Aston Villa sign Belgian defender De Laet from Leicester

Football Soccer - Bolton Wanderers v Middlesbrough - Sky Bet Football League Championship - Macron Stadium - 15/16 - 16/4/16 Middlesbrough's Ritchie de Laet Mandatory Credit: Action Images / Ed Sykes/Files

REUTERS - Aston Villa have signed defender Ritchie De Laet from Premier League champions Leicester City on a three-year contract.

"I'm pleased to have brought Ritchie to the club," manager Roberto Di Matteo told second-tier Villa's website (www.avfc.co.uk) on Tuesday.

"He is ... a player who not only has Championship experience but has also played a part in helping a team win promotion back to the Premier League."

The 27-year-old Belgian full back, who made 129 appearances for Leicester after leaving Manchester United in 2012, moved to Middlesbrough on loan in January and helped them finish second in the Championship.

De Laet enjoyed an unprecedented double celebration in May when he picked up a Premier League winner's medal with Leicester on the same day Middlesbrough won promotion to the top flight.

(Reporting by Ian Rodricks in Bengaluru; Editing by Tony Jimenez)