LONDON (Reuters) - French international defender Jean-Alain Boumsong has joined Juventus from Newcastle United for 4.8 million Euros (3.3 million pounds), the Premier League club said on Tuesday.

Boumsong joined Newcastle from Rangers in January 2005 and although he made 59 appearances he struggled to impress fans.

The 26-year-old has 20 caps and was in the French World Cup squad in Germany but did not see any action.  He has signed a four-year contract and Newcastle could be in for further payments depending on performance-related bonuses.

It was a rare purchase by Juve, who have spent much of the close season selling their best players following their demotion to Serie B for their role in the Italian match-fixing scandal.