Svennis will coach Côte d'Ivoire in the World Cup

Former England boss Sven-Goran Eriksson has been appointed to coach Ivory Coast at the World Cup in South Africa.

An announcement was made on Sunday, with Mark Hughes and former Real Madrid coach Bernd Schuster also coming under consideration for the role.

A statement from the country's football federation said: "He's an experienced coach who has proved himself.

"His objective is to ensure an honourable participation at the upcoming World Cup."

Bosnian coach Vahid Halilhodzic was sacked last month after the Elephants failed to reach the Africa Cup of Nations semi-finals.

Ivory Coast, led by Chelsea's Didier Drogba, are drawn with Brazil, Portugal and North Korea in Group G at the World Cup in South Africa in June and July.

Swede Eriksson joined England in 2001 after a successful club management career in Europe, including an Italian championship with Lazio in 2000.

He led England to two World Cup quarter-finals but the high point of his reign was the 5-1 win over Germany in the qualifiers for Japan and South Korea only months after he had taken over.

Since leaving England after the 2006 World Cup, he managed Manchester City, Mexico and was director of football at Notts County.

BBC Online, Mar. 28th, 2010

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