Julen Lopetegui has been appointed head coach of the Qatar national team

Spanish specialist Julen Lopetegui has been appointed head coach of the Qatar national team.

Julen Lopetegui (photo: gettyimages.com)

Former coach of the England national team, West Ham, and Wolverhampton, who briefly managed Real in 2018, has signed a contract until 2027, when the Asian Cup will be held in Saudi Arabia.

Lopetegui replaces his fellow countryman Luis Garcia, and his first matches at the helm of the team will be the games against Iran and Uzbekistan in June as part of the qualification for next year’s World Cup.

The biggest success in the career of the 58-year-old specialist was winning the Europa League trophy with Sevilla in 2020. He also led the Spanish national team from 2016 to 2018 but was dismissed a few days before the start of the World Cup after it was revealed that the Spanish Football Association had been conducting secret negotiations with him regarding the coaching position at Real.