Barcelona has appointed Ernesto Valverde as their head coach on a two-year deal, with an option for a third.
He replaces Luis Enrique, who revealed in March that he would leave the club – who finished second in La Liga – at the end of his three-year contract, BBC Sports reports.
Barca president Josep Maria Bartomeu praised 53-year-old Valverde’s “ability, judgement, knowledge and experience.” and expects Valverde to be able to handle managing the Catalan giants.
“I have spoken personally with Valverde and he is happy and excited about the challenge of coaching Barca,” he told a press conference on Monday.
“He has a philosophy of the game that is very Barca and he is a hard worker. Also, he is passionate about applying technology to both training and matches.”
Valverde played for Barca for two years between 1988 and 1990 winning the Cup Winners’ Cup and Copa del Rey as a player at Barca, while he also played for Espanyol, Athletic and Real Mallorca, winning one senior cap for Spain.
Since retiring in 1997 he has managed Espanyol, Olympiacos – twice – Villarreal, Valencia and Bilbao.
Valverde’s presentation as Barca’s new coach will take place on Thursday.