Santos fills coaching void at Benfica

Former Sporting Clube de Portugal and FC Porto coach Fernando Santos has been appointed as Ronald Koeman's replacement at SL Benfica.

'Good progress'
The 51-year-old arrives at the Estádio da Luz from AEK Athens FC on a two-year contract and is relishing the opportunity to shine on the return to his homeland. "Benfica have made good progress in recent years," said Santos. "It is a world-renowned club, with a very long history and there are a number of goals on the horizon. We will obviously look to achieve them, with hard work and devotion."

European ambition
The first "goal" will be to guide Benfica into the UEFA Champions League group stage, after a third-placed finish in the Portuguese Liga left them needing to negotiate the third qualifying round. Santos went one better with AEK this season as they finished runners-up to Olympaicos CFP. The former GD Estoril-Praia, CF Estrela da Amadora and Panathinaikos FC coach now returns to Portugal, joining an elite band of managers to have led all three of the Liga's big guns.