ROBERTO Mancini has been confirmed as the new Saudi Arabia manager.
The ex-Man City boss, 58, surprisingly quit his role as Italy boss two weeks ago.
But now, the Saudi Arabian Football Federation have announced the Italian as their next coach in a video online.
Mancini has reportedly put pen to paper on a staggering £77million deal over three years.
He will be unveiled in a glitzy ceremony in Riyadh on Monday, according to Gazzetta dello Sport.
His first match in charge will be against Costa Rica in a friendly at St James’ Park on September 8.
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Four days later, The Green Falcons will take on South Korea during the international break.
Then, he will face a World Cup 2026 qualifier against either Cambodia or Pakistan in their opening group game.
Saudi Arabia Under 23 coach Saad Al-Shehri was temporarily placed in charge of the senior side, who had been without a permanent coach since Herve Renard left in March.
The Gulf state qualified for both the 2018 and 2022 World Cups but went out in the group stages on both occasions.
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However, they had a memorable 2-1 victory against World Cup winners Argentina last year in the group stage.
Mancini is the latest high-profile figure to head to Saudi Arabia.
Players that have made the move to the country include Cristiano Ronaldo, Karim Benzema and N’Golo Kante, while Neymar has joined Al-Hilal from Paris Saint-Germain.
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Mancini has had a lengthy and successful managing career taking charge of Manchester City, Inter Milan, Fiorentina, Lazio, Galatasaray, and Zenit Saint Petersburg.
He won the Serie A title three times with Inter and recorded a Premier League triumph with Man City.
While as an international tactician, he won the Euro 2020 with the Azzurri – beating England on a penalty shootout.
Source: Soccer - thesun.co.uk
