Petrovic deal completed

Zeljko Petrovic has been confirmed as assistant manager to Avram Grant.

44-year-old Petrovic was confirmed as Grant's new number two this afternoon - as KUMB.com revealed earlier this week. Grant, speaking about the decision to hire Petrovic - the final piece in his backroom team jigsaw - told whufc.com:

"I am happy that we now have the staff set-up that I presented to the owners when I came. The aim is to take the team forward with professional, positive people and have a creative atmosphere. Zeljko Petrovic has a lot of experience and knowledge as a player and a coach.

"Paul [Groves] knows my methods and did a great job for me at Portsmouth. He is one of the main reasons we went all the way to the FA Cup final with all the difficulties. Kevin [Keen] has represented the traditions of West Ham and is also a very good coach and a positive person."

Petrovic, a former right-back, represented Yugoslavia between 1990-1998 and spent his playing career at a number of top clubs across Europe, including Seville, PSV and Dinamo Zagreb.

Upon hanging up his boots in 2003 he coached Feyenoord as part of a management team headed by Ruud Gullit before moving on to Boavista in a managerial capacity in 2006. However just six weeks after taking the post he was fired following poor initial results.

In 2007/08 Petrovic took Waalwijk to runners-up spot in the Eerste Divisie before becoming assistant to former Spurs boss Martin Jol at Hamburg in 2008/09, where the duo achieved a fifth-placed finish in the Bundesliga. However that was also short-lived after Jol walked out following disagreements over transfer funds; he later joined Ajax.