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Ex-Man United boss Ole Gunnar Solskjær named Besiktas head coach

Turkish side Besiktas have appointed former Manchester United player and manager Ole Gunnar Solskjær as head coach, the club has confirmed.

"We believe Ole Gunnar Solskjær will make significant contributions to our club, and we warmly welcome him to the Besiktas family, wishing him great success," a Besiktas statement said.

The 51-year-old has agreed to a deal until the end of next season, with an option to extend for another year. It is his first managerial role since being sacked by United in 2021.

Solskjær played 366 times for United between 1996-2007, scoring 126 goals. He returned to Old Trafford as interim manager in 2018, taking over from Jose Mourinho. After an impressive start, Solskjær was given the role full time in 2019, but was sacked following a poor run of results.

Solskjær takes over at Besiktas, who have won the Turkish Super Lig title 16 times, with the team sixth in the table. They have been without a permanent head coach since Giovanni van Bronckhorst left in November.

Besiktas host Samsunspor later on Saturday and travel to Antalyaspor next week in the Super Lig. Besiktas are 28th in the Europa League standings, a point off the playoff places, with two games left to play in the league phase.

The appointment means Solskjær is the second former United manager to take charge of a Turkish side, with Mourinho managing Fenerbahce.

Informtion from Reuters was used in this report.