Notts County have confirmed former England manager Sven-Goran Eriksson has joined the English League Two side as director of football. The former England manager had been in talks about taking a senior role at the club.

The oldest professional football club in the world was taken over by a Middle Eastern group, Munto Finance, last month and consortium officials have been in talks with Eriksson’s representatives.

And in a statement on their official website, www.nottscountyfc.co.uk, the East Midlands side confirmed Eriksson’s appointment.

“Sven will assume his role with immediate effect,” read the statement. “He will be joining with his long-term assistant Tord Grip, who will assume the role of general advisor.”

Eriksson will look after the club’s youth academy as well as player development, transfer negotiations and building overseas links. The 61-year-old Swede is looking forward to the challenge.

“I am particularly attracted to this role and the unique opportunity to help build a club over the longer term,” he said.

“I will be responsible for all aspects of the football side of the club and in line with the aspirations of the new owners, wish to build the club at the heart of the community.

“We hope to leave a long and lasting legacy for Notts County and its fans.”

The appointment is an astonishing twist in the tale of Eriksson, who has been one of the leading managers in football over the last two decades.

After achieving the league and cup double in three different countries — Sweden, Portugal and Italy — he left Lazio to become England’s first foreign manager.

Quarter-final exits in the 2002 World Cup and Euro 2004 followed, and he had already announced his departure before England’s disappointing 2006 World Cup campaign, which again ended in the last eight.

His single season as Manchester City manager, 2007-08, should be seen as a success but he parted company with the club, who were poised for a Middle Eastern takeover of their own, and was announced as the new head coach of Mexico in June last year.

That appointment turned out to be the least successful of his career and several disappointing results in their World Cup qualifying campaign led to his sacking.