Everton on Wednesday completed the appointment of former Liverpool boss Rafael Benitez as their new manager, the Premier League confirmed through a Twitter post.
The Spaniard has agreed to a three-year deal and will begin working with the club when they return from pre-season training from July 5.
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Benitez becomes The Toffees’ fifth manager in as many years following the exit of Carlo Ancelotti, who returned to work with La Liga giants Real Madrid after leading Everton to a 10-place finish last season.
As quoted by the official Everton website, Benitez, upon his appointment, said: “I am delighted to be joining Everton. Throughout this process, I have been greatly impressed by the ambition shown by the senior representatives at the Club and their desire to bring success to this historic Club.
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“I believe this is a Club that is going places. I’m determined to play a big part in helping this great Club achieve its ambitions.”
Benitez had taken the reigns of Liverpool in 2004 and worked there for six years, including guiding the Merseyside club to the Champions League title in 2005 and the FA Cup in 2006. In 2013, he led Chelsea to the Europa League title as their interim manager.
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After two seasons with Napoli and a brief stint at Real Madrid, where he was sacked midway through the season, Benitez returned to England and took charge of Newcastle United who were staring at relegation from the top flight in March 2016.
Everton will confirm the staff who will join Duncan Ferguson and Alan Kelly as part of Benitez’s backroom team in the coming days.
(With inputs from Reuters)