Dutch international central defender Wesley Hoedt has completed his move to Watford.

The 28-year-old will join from Anderlecht for an undisclosed fee on a permanent transfer – not a loan – after agreeing a two-and-a-half-year contract.

The defender will go into the squad for Saturday’s trip to Reading.

Capped six times by the Netherlands, Hoedt has been with Anderlecht since the summer of 2021, but having featured in their first 15 Jupiler League games of the season he hasn’t played since the 4-2 win over Eupen at the end of October.

He has also made 10 Europa Conference League outings for Anderlecht this term.

Hoedt started his career with AZ Alkmaar before spending two years in Italy with Lazio, where he 48 Serie A appearances and scored twice.

In 2017 he moved to England and joined Southampton for £15m, making 41 appearances in the Premier League. He also made a further four starts for the Saints in the FA Cup, including the 1-0 Third Round win over Watford at St Mary’s on January 27.

He then scored in the Fourth Round 2-1 win away at West Brom and helped Southampton reach the semi-finals, where they lost 2-0 to Chelsea.

He fell out of favour on the South Coast, and loan spells followed at Celta Vigo, Antwerp and Lazio, before he moved to Anderlecht in June 2021.

His six appearances for Holland all came in 2017 and included four World Cup qualifiers.