Chelsea appoints Scolari as new coach

Jun 11, 2008 - 8:23 PM LONDON (Ticker) -- Chelsea named Luiz Felipe Scolari as its new manager Wednesday.

The current coach for Portugal, Scolari was one of the favorites to succeed Avram Grant at Stamford Bridge.

But the timing of Scolari's appointment has come as a huge surprise. He currently is managing Portugal at the European Championship and was not expected to make a decision about his future until after the tournament.

"Chelsea Football Club is delighted to confirm that Luiz Felipe Scolari will be the club's new manager from July 1, 2008," the team said in a statement. "Felipe has great qualities. He is one of the world's top coaches with a record of success at country and club level, he gets the best out of a talented squad of players and his ambitions and expectations match ours.

"He was the outstanding choice."

Under Scolari, Portugal defeated the Czech Republic 3-1 Wednesday and sits atop Group A with six points, including their opening triumph over Turkey.

"Out of respect for his current role as head coach of the Portuguese national team, and to ensure minimum disruption to this work, there will be no further comment from Chelsea FC nor from Felipe about his new role until his employment with us commences," the statement added.