Portuguese Trainee of Jose Mourinho Becomes Coach of Bulgaria's Ludogorets

The Portuguese Bruno Ribeiro became on Wednesday the new head coach of Bulgaria's reigning football champion Ludogorets.

Ribeiro signed a contract after lengthy negotiations with the president of the club Alexander Alexandrov and sports director Metodi Tomanov, the club's website informs.

Ribeiro is a retired left midfielder, who spent most of his career playing for Portuguese team Vitoria Setubal, but also competed for two English clubs - Leeds United and Sheffield United.

He started his coaching career at the under-17 team of Setubal before proceeding to coach the men's team.

The 39-year-old Portuguese boasts solid recommendations from prominent football coaches and is among the most promising young specialists in Europe.

Ribeiro is a close friend of Jose Mourinho and had the opportunity to complete two traineeships under his guidance in Chelsea and Real Madrid.

After the signing of the contract, Ribeiro shared his excitement of becoming part of such a great club.

The Portuguese was particularly impressed by the performance of Ludogorets in the Champions League last season and expressed hope that under his guidance the team will achieve similar results.

Meanwhile, the football players of Ludogorets are to depart to the town of Smolyan, where the first stage of their summer preparations will take place.

In the past two days, the players have undergone complete medical and fitness examinations under the supervision of the two Spanish physical coaches Sergio Matri and Javier Ramos.