BIRMINGHAM, England -- Robbie Keane joined Aston Villa on Thursday on a two-month loan from the Los Angeles Galaxy.

With the European Championship coming up in June, the Ireland captain wants to stay sharp during the Major League Soccer offseason while many of his Galaxy teammates are off.

"I'm delighted to be back in the Premier League," the 31-year-old forward said. "This is only short-term."

New York Red Bulls forward Thierry Henry only needed minutes back in English soccer on Monday to score and give Arsenal a 1-0 victory over Leeds and a berth in the fourth round of the FA Cup.

"Can I do a Thierry Henry? I hope so. It would be great to do that," Keane said. "It was written that he was always going to come back and score on his return to Arsenal. Good luck to him. He is obviously a legend at Arsenal. If I can do something like that in the six (league) games, and help the team, that is great."

Keane has been training with Villa since the start of the week and will be in contention to make his debut on Saturday against Everton, which has Galaxy teammate Landon Donovan on loan.

Villa (5-7-8) is 13th in the Premier League, seven points above the relegation zone.

"I'll be trying my best to make a big impact and help the team push forward up the table," Keane said. "If I can pass my experience and knowledge on to the younger players and help this team, then great."

Villa record signing Darren Bent is relishing reforming their partnership from when they played together at Tottenham.

"It's a top signing, a really clever move," Bent said. "In training, Robbie has looked razor-sharp and up for the challenge. He's a great player, and he has been for many years."



Copyright 2012 by The Associated Press