Gabon Name Frenchman Patrice Neveu as New Coach

The Gabon Football Federation has appointed Patrice Neveu as the new national team head coach.

The 65-year-old coach replaces Daniel Cousin who was sacked in March after failing to qualify for the 2019 Africa Cup of Nations finals in Egypt.

Neveu, who was sacked by Guinea giants Horoya AC two months ago, has been given a contract until the end of 2021 Africa Cup of Nations.

Former Etoile du Sahel gaffer Hubert Velud has been considered for the post, with media reports in Gabon suggesting he was a favorite for the job.

Talks between the parties took place but Velud was unable to accept the position because of his other contractual commitments.

That led to surprise naming of Neveu who has a lot of experience in Africa having coached Niger, DR Congo, and Mauritania.

Neveu started his coaching career with French semi-professional clubs Angoulme and La Rochelle before moving to Africa and China.

He has worked in Morocco at AS Sale, Egypt with Ismaily and Smouha, Haiti, Laos national teams and in China worked at Dalian Shide and Zhuhai.