BY ALAN TEMPLE – @CCP_Sport
DAVID HOPKIN hopes the marquee capture of fans’ favourite Raffaele De Vita can put “bums on seats” after the Italian signed on for a second stint at Livingston.
The League 1 outfit completed a major coup this week when the former Swindon and Bradford star penned a deal until the end of the season following his summer release by Ross County.
De Vita made his name at Livi between 2008 and 2011 and Hopkin is adamant he has been snapped up for his quality on the pitch, rather than a marketing exercise.
Nevertheless, he believes the return of the man who scored 22 goals to help the club rise from the bottom tier back to the Championship could tempt some lapsed punters back to Almondvale.
De Vita will be pitched straight into the squad to face Alloa on Saturday and Hopkin lauded:
“We’ve watched him in training and he looks great. His touch, fitness, quality – it’s all there, and we are delighted to be able to get him in.
”The thing that was in our favour when trying to get him was that he has played here before and he has a real affiliation with this club and is very popular with the supporters.
“We didn’t sign him with the purpose of getting people through the door, we signed him to play and make an impact on the pitch, but if the by-product of that is to get more bums on seats then we’ll be delighted.
“I’m sure there will be a lot of supporters considering coming out of the woodwork due to what he did for the club first time round and that is always welcome. Hopefully they’ll come out in their numbers.”
