Sousa to coach FC Basel

Reuters - May 28 (Reuters) - Swiss champions FC Basel named much-travelled former Portugal international Paulo Sousa as their new coach on Wednesday. The 43-year-old has signed a three-year contract and replaces Murat Yakin, who parted company with the club two days after they won a fifth successive Swiss league title earlier this month.

Sousa has previously coach Queens Park Rangers, Leicester City and Swansea City, who were all in the English second tier at the time, followed by Hungarian side Videoton, where he spent 18 months. Last season, he was at Maccabi Tel Aviv in Israel. Sousa, who won over 50 caps for Portugal as a defensive midfielder, will have some rebuilding to do as Basel have sold goalkeeper Yann Sommer and attacking midfielder Valentin Stocker, two key players.

Basel have qualified directly for next season’s Champions League group stage.

Yakin has been linked in the media with England's Southampton.

(Reporting by Brian Homewood, editing by Mark Meadows; [e-mail]; Reuters Messaging: [e-mail]; To sign up for our Global Sports Forum chatroom, click on https://forms.thomsonreuters.com/global_sports_forum)