Leicester City have appointed former Southampton boss Claude Puel as their new manager on a contract until 2020.
Puel led Southampton to an eighth-place finish in the Premier League last season as well as the League Cup final but still lost his job in June, with his style of football coming in for criticism from Saints fans.
However, Leicester have offered him a return to the Premier League, with the 56-year-old succeeding Craig Shakespeare at the club following his sacking earlier this month.
In a statement on Leicester's official website, Puel said: "It's a great privilege to become the new manager of Leicester City - a club whose values and ambitions are closely aligned to my own. The opportunity to help the Club build on its remarkable recent achievements is a truly exciting one and I'm looking forward to working with the owners, players, staff and supporters to deliver further lasting success."
Puel, who has also managed Monaco, Lille, Lyon and Nice -- winning the Ligue 1 title with Monaco in 2000 -- reportedly beat off competition from Burnley boss Sean Dyche, former Manchester City manager Manuel Pellegrini and ex-Manchester United player Ryan Giggs for the Leicester job.
#lcfc are delighted to announce the appointment of Claude Puel as the Club's new First Team Manager: https://t.co/OQeKNdlHWF#WelcomeClaude pic.twitter.com/RRgEdELdhy
— Leicester City (@LCFC) October 25, 2017
Shakespeare, who was named permanent Leicester boss in June after replacing Claudio Ranieri as caretaker in February, was dismissed after leaving the club in the relegation zone with six points from eight games.
Michael Appleton was placed in charge following Shakespeare's sacking and has since guided Leicester to a 2-1 victory over Swansea to leave them 14th in the table, as well as a 3-1 Carabao Cup fourth-round victory over Leeds.
Leicester confirmed that Appleton will retain his position as assistant manager.