Former Chelsea manager Roberto Di Matteo resurfaces with Schalke

Schalke announced on Tuesday they were appointing Robert Di Matteo, who won the Champions League with Chelsea in 2012, to replace Jens Keller.

Roberto Di Matteo, then managing Chelsea, shown during a training session with the club in November 2012. He was announced as Schalke's new manager on Tuesday, October 7, 2014. Alessandro Garofalo / Reuters / November 20, 2012

Schalke have appointed Roberto Di Matteo as their new coach after relieving Jens Keller of his duties on Tuesday morning.

Di Matteo, who won the Champions League during a brief spell in charge of Chelsea in 2012, has been out of work since being dismissed by the Premier League leaders and he inherits an underperforming side.

Former Stuttgart coach Keller has been shown the door after just under two years in charge of Schalke, with the club currently 11th in the Bundesliga table.

They are just three points above the bottom three and the same distance from the top six and were eliminated from the DFB-Pokal (German Cup) in the first round.

Saturday’s 2-1 defeat at Hoffenheim proved to be the final straw for Keller, whose position was always under scrutiny from the day he replaced Huub Stevens.

He managed to lead the club into the Champions League in each of his two seasons.

Follow us on Twitter @SprtNationalUAE