Former French captain Didier Deschamps has signed a two-year contract to manage Serie A champions Juventus, according to a statement released by the club today.

Deschamps led Monaco to its first UEFA Champions League final in 2004, before resiging last year after a poor start to the season.

The Frenchman, who won three Italian titles and the Champions League with Juventus as a player in the mid-nineties, captained Les Bleus to victories in the 1998 World Cup and Euro 2000.

During his playing career, Deschamps also played for Marseille, Chelsea and Valencia

Deschamps said last month that Juventus had asked him to coach the side if they were relegated to the second-tier Serie B as a punishment in the ongoing match-fixing trial that has scandalised the footballing world.

His contract is due to run until June 30th, 2008.