Avram Grant

Avram Grant has returned to management in England with the club that first brought him to the Premier League.

Born in Israel in 1955, Grant began his coaching career at the age of 19 having never played the game professionally. He won the youth championship with Hapoel Petach Tikva and was then appointed to coach the senior team, becoming the youngest ever manager in the Israeli top division.

Grant then moved to Maccabi Tel Aviv, guiding the club to a first league title in 13 years, before taking over at the helm of Israel's glamour club, Maccabi Haifa, where he won two championships. The national team beckoned and, in 2002, Grant entered the history books as Israel's youngest manager.

His record split opinion, however, as Israel failed to qualify for the 2006 World Cup despite remaining unbeaten in a group with Republic of Ireland, France and Switzerland. He resigned in November 2005 because of the Israeli FA's reluctance to open contract talks.

In August 2006, he was appointed technical director at Portsmouth, after the club was taken over by Sasha Gaydamak. He remained at Fratton Park for just one season, however, as Chelsea owner Roman Abramovich, a personal friend, made him director of football at Stamford Bridge in July 2007.

Shortly after his arrival, Jose Mourinho was dismissed after a 1-1 draw at home to Rosenborg in front of just 24,973 fans - the club's worst attendance in four years - and Grant was surprisingly named as his successor.

Many supporters reacted poorly to Grant's appointment but, with the assistance of Steve Clarke and Henk ten Cate, Grant's Chelsea provided a strong challenge in the Premier League and came within a penalty shoot-out of winning the Champions League - after John Terry missed the crucial kick in Moscow. Nonetheless, amid frequent reports that the players wanted a more experienced boss in charge, Grant was fired just days after the end of the season.

Having been linked with a succession of jobs, Grant eventually returned to Portsmouth in October 2009 as the club's director of football. As at Chelsea, he held the role for only a matter of weeks before taking over as manager following Paul Hart's departure.

Unlike at Chelsea, though, Grant arrived to rescue a club floundering at the foot of the table with serious financial issues and a continuing sense of uncertainty. Without experienced assistants and world-class players this time around, Grant's spell at Portsmouth will give him the chance to prove that he can deliver success against the odds.