Christian Gourcuff has been appointed as new Nantes head coach, the Ligue 1 club have confirmed.

The former Rennes and Lorient boss heads back to France's top flight after a spell in Qatar with Al-Gharafa.

Like predecessor Vahid Halilhodzic, Gourcuff has also coached the Algeria national team and, in a statement to confirm his appointment, Nantes noted previous attempts to appoint the 64-year-old by referring to "several opportunities missed between the two parties".

"FC Nantes has always represented something for me. In the past, I almost joined the club, but it did not happen," Gourcuff said.

"When president Waldemar Kita called me, it was something I owed him. I'm really happy to sign here."

Nantes finished 12th in Ligue last season and parted company with Halilhodzic last week amid reports of a breakdown in relations between the veteran tactician and Kita.

 Christian Gourcuff

 « Le FC Nantes a toujours représenté quelque chose pour moi. Par le passé, j'ai failli rejoindre le Club mais ça ne s'est pas fait. Quand le Président m'a appelé, c'est quelque chose que je lui devais. Je suis vraiment très heureux de signer ici » pic.twitter.com/Sbo6dBFT3L

— FC Nantes (@FCNantes) August 8, 2019