Oscar Garcia appointed St Etienne head coach

Oscar Garcia has succeeded the long-serving Christophe Galtier as St Etienne's head coach.

The 44-year-old Spaniard leaves his role as Red Bull Salzburg boss to take over at the Stade Geoffroy-Guichard, where Galtier was previously in charge for eight seasons.

Garcia, who has previously managed Brighton and Watford, has signed a two-year deal with St Etienne and will bring three assistant coaches with him.

ASSE president Roland Romeyer told the club's official website: "We took our time to choose a coach who would help the club take a new path in its progress. We studied a huge number of applications.

"Oscar Garcia has the perfect profile. He is competent, as proven by his success with Salzburg, but also passionate, experienced and innovative. I am convinced he will move ASSE forward."

Former Barcelona midfielder Garcia won two Austrian Bundesliga titles and two Austrian Cups with Salzburg and was a championship-winning manager in Israel with Maccabi Tel Aviv in 2013.