Former AC Milan, Real Madrid and Juventus head coach Fabio Capello on Sunday signed with Chinese football club Jiangsu Suning on an 18-month contract for a yearly salary of 10 million euros ($11.19 million).
"Jiangsu Suning club has officially signed with Fabio Capello today. Capello will manage the club on all matches as the head coach from now on," announced Jiangsu on Sunday.
"It's a consideration on the strategic progress of the club in linking up with Capello, who will bring advanced ideas and methods on club management, coaches training and youth team training programme along with steering Jiangsu to built-in agenda," added the Chinese Super League (CSL) club.
Capello brings some familiar faces with him as part of the staff, namely Gianluca Zambrotta and ex-Milan caretaker coach Cristian Brocchi.
The former England and Russia coach Capello visited the training ground of Jiangsu Suning on Sunday morning and inspected the team's training.
Capello is the third reputable Italian coaching in China following suit of Marcello Lippi and Fabio Cannavaro.
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Lippi is already the head coach of China national team after successfully steering CSL club Guangzhou Evergrande to three successive domestic league champions and Asian champions once in three years.
Cannavarro is on the bench of Tianjin Quanjian, which had been promoted to the top flight this season, and guides the club to the current sixth place with 19 points, 12 adrift of league pace-setters Guangzhou Evergrande.
Jiangsu were on the lookout for a new boss after South Korea's Choi Yong-Soo resigned from CSL last week.
The Italian boasts a stunning CV of Serie A, La Liga and Champions League success, although the 70-year-old had been out the dug-out since leaving his position in charge of Russia two years ago.
Jiangsu are currently struggling near the bottom of the CSL and were eliminated by Shanghai SIPG in the first knockout stage of the AFC Champions League.
Jiangsu only ranked 15th in the CSL table after 12 rounds, second from the bottom and struggling to break away from the relegation zone.
CSL has been among world leading football league in drawing top coaches with Felipe Scolari in Guangzhou Evergrande, Manuel Luis Pellegrini in Hebei China Fortune, Felix Magath in Shandong Luneng and Villas-Boas in Shanghai SIPG.
--IANS
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