Aston Villa have signed Los Angeles Galaxy striker Robbie Keane on loan until February 25, subject to Fifa clearance.
Keane, 31, was training with Villa before the deal and could face Everton at Villa Park on Saturday.
He said: "I'm delighted to be back in the Premier League.
"This is only short term, of course, but there has been a lot of speculation over the years linking my name to Villa and, finally, I'm here."
He added: "I'm excited about it and I know I'll really enjoy my time here. It's only for two months but I will do my absolute best in these two months.
"Villa is a great club, a club with a massive tradition and standing in the game. Villa Park is one of the finest stadiums I've ever played in.
"I've been training with the players here for the past few days and it's been great but I'm not naive enough to think I'll just walk straight into the team."
The Republic of Ireland striker was on the verge of joining Villa in 1999 from Wolves, only for a late hitch over the transfer fee seeing him move to Coventry instead.
It is also a case of second time lucky for McLeish regarding the capture of Keane.
McLeish was hopeful of signing Keane 12 months ago when in charge of Birmingham, who announced they had agreed a £6m fee with Tottenham. But the player instead went on loan to West Ham before leaving White Hart Lane for the United States last summer.
The Villa boss said: "We have been pursuing Robbie to bring him in with his extra experience in terms of the attack.
"Robbie is a guy who is going to be playing in a huge tournament at the end of the season (Euro 2012). I'm sure he will not want to let his standards drop at this stage of his career.
"We should have a massively motivated boy on our hands."
McLeish considers Keane's arrival a timely boost, considering the way their squad has been tested in recent times.
"I believe we could be doing with that when you see one or two of our players getting injured over the last couple of weeks," he said. "We've got young kids trying to prove themselves in the Barclays Premier League but it's very scatter-gun the experience they are getting with 10 minutes here, 15 minutes there."
Villa received the final paperwork from LA Galaxy during the early hours of Thursday morning.
Keane could face an instant reunion with his Galaxy team-mate Landon Donovan in Saturday's clash with Everton. American Donovan has linked up with the Toffees for a second loan period.
Villa's record signing Darren Bent, who played alongside Keane at Tottenham, said: "It's a top signing, a really clever move.
"In training, Robbie has looked razor-sharp and up for the challenge. He's a great player and he has been for many years.
"He will help all the other strikers here but, more importantly, he will help Villa. He will bring experience which will aid a few of the younger lads who are breaking through into the team and the other youngsters in and around the place."
