© Reuters/THILO SCHMUELGEN2. Bundesliga - FC Cologne v SV Darmstadt 98
BERLIN (Reuters) - Schalke 04 on Tuesday appointed Dimitrios Grammozis as head coach on a contract to 2022, two days after sacking Christian Gross with the club anchored at the bottom of the Bundesliga.
The 42-year-old Grammozis, a former Bundesliga player and Greece youth international who has only coached clubs in the lower leagues so far, including most recently second division Darmstadt 98, is the club's fifth coach this season.
"We are convinced that with Dimitrios Grammozis we have found the right coach for the last third of the season," said current sports director Peter Knaebel.
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"We all know of the sporting situation but there are still 11 league matches and we want to be as successful as possible. Dimitrios is the right choice for that."
Schalke on Sunday sacked Swiss manager Gross, his assistant and several club officials, including sports director Jochen Schneider, in sweeping changes following their 5-1 loss at VfB Stuttgart in the Bundesliga on Saturday.
Grammozis succeeds 66-year-old Gross, with Schalke also having been coached by David Wagner, Manuel Baum and briefly Huub Stevens this season.
Schalke prop up the league on nine points from 23 games, nine behind 16th spot that leads to a relegation playoff place.
(Reporting by Karolos Grohmann; Editing by Ken Ferris)