Riise leaves Liverpool for Roma

Liverpool full-back John Arne Riise has signed for AS Roma in a deal worth €5 million.

The Norwegian defender landed in the Italian capital on Wednesday morning to open negotiations with last season's Serie A runners-up. And a deal has been struck already, with Risse putting pen to paper on a four-year contract.

Riise leaves Merseyside after seven seasons with Liverpool, whom he joined from Ligue 1 side Monaco in 2001.

The 27-year-old won the Champions League in 2005 and the FA Cup in 2006 in his time at Anfield.

Riise, noted for his fierce shot and also effective in midfield, was a regular under former manager Gerard Houllier and in the early years of current boss Rafael Benitez's reign.

He established a reputation for spectacular goals, including one after just 45 seconds of the 2005 Carling Cup final against Chelsea and one in the following year's FA Cup semi-finals, the Blues again the opponents.

However, his 2006-07 campaign was overshadowed by an incident involving former team-mate Craig Bellamy at a training campaign in Portugal, for which the Welshman was disciplined.

He endured an indifferent 2007-08 campaign, the nadir being when he scored an own goal in the final minute of his side's Champions League semi-final first leg against Chelsea.