Didier Deschamps will replace Eric Gerets as Marseille coach starting next season. Marseille announced on its web site Tuesday that Deschamps, a former France midfielder, has agreed to a two-year contract and will start in June.
The 40-year-old Deschamps returns to management after quitting Juventus at the end of the 2006-2007 season, when he guided the Italian team back up to Serie A following a match-fixing scandal thst left it relegated to second-tier Serie B. Deschamps, who made a reputation as a tough and tactical midfielder, was part of the Marseille team that won the 1993 European Cup — the only French club to do so. He also won the World Cup with France in 1998 and the European Championship in 2000.
"The choice of Didier Deschamps, whose career as a player and as a coach speak largely in his favor, was a natural choice," the club said in a statement.