LONDON // Avram Grant has been named Portsmouth manager to replace Paul Hart who was sacked earlier this week, the Premier League club said today. "Avram is a very experienced and respected manager who has managed at the highest level. The board believes he is the man to help steer the club out of the relegation zone," Peter Storrie, the chief executive, said on the club's website. Grant will take charge for the home game against Manchester United on Saturday in his role as director of football. The club will then apply to switch his work permit status to manager. The 54-year-old former Chelsea manager re-joined Portsmouth in October shortly after Saudi Arabian businessman Ali al Faraj's takeover of the south coast club.
"He knows the club, the players and the set-up at Fratton Park, so it was the logical move to make him the next manager, once the board had decided to relieve Paul Hart of the role," Storrie added. Grant was previously Portsmouth's technical director from June 2006 to July 2007. He then moved to Chelsea, replacing Jose Mourinho in September 2007 before being sacked the following May despite taking the west London club to the Champions League final. * Reuters
