Chinese club Guangzhou R&F says it has hired former England coach Sven-Goran Eriksson as manager on an 18-month contract. The Chinese Super League side said in a message posted on its website that Eriksson took over on Tuesday. The 64-year-old Swede's last job was as technical director of <a href="gopher://topicL3RoZW5hdGlvbmFsL1N1YmplY3RzL1VBRSBQcm8gTGVhZ3Vl" inlink="topic::L3RoZW5hdGlvbmFsL1N1YmplY3RzL1VBRSBQcm8gTGVhZ3Vl">UAE Pro League</a> club <a href="gopher://topicL3RoZW5hdGlvbmFsL09yZ2FuaXNhdGlvbnMvU3BvcnRzIHRlYW1zL1VBRSBmb290YmFsbCB0ZWFtcy9BbCBOYXNy" inlink="topic::L3RoZW5hdGlvbmFsL09yZ2FuaXNhdGlvbnMvU3BvcnRzIHRlYW1zL1VBRSBmb290YmFsbCB0ZWFtcy9BbCBOYXNy">Al Nasr</a>, a position he left on Monday. Eriksson's long career includes a five-year stint as England manager, and he has also managed Fiorentina, Roma, Lazio, Benfica, Manchester City, Mexico and Ivory Coast. In the past two years, he has held several short-term posts, managing English second-tier side Leicester, advising a Thai club and then spending five months in the UAE. Chinese teams have increasingly looked to foreign talent in hopes of boosting their international competitiveness. Follow us