Egyptian outfit Ismaily have appointed French tactician Didier Gomes Da Rosa as the club's new coach, the costal club announced early on Tuesday. "The board officially signed Da Rosa to succeed Serbian coach Miodrag Jesic," reads a short statement on Ismaily's official website. Earlier in December, the club announced parting ways with Jesic amicably following the heavy 3-0 league loss to rivals Ittihad of Alexandria. After Jesic's departure, assistant coach Adham El-Selehdar and the club's former striker Mohamed Mohsen Abu-Greisha were in charge of the team temporarily until the appointment of the new foreign coach. "Da Rosa will be monitoring Tuesday's league match against Pyramids FC from the stands before starting his mission officially from Wednesday," the Ismaily statement added. The 50-year-old Da Rosa was a free agent after departing Guinean side Horoya AC last November despite guiding the team to the league title last season. He also had a successful stint with Cameroonian side Coton Sport from 2013 to 2015; winning the league title twice, the Cup once, besides reaching the Confederation Cup semi final. It won't be the first time for Da Rosa to work in an Arab country, as he previously guided Algeria's CS Constantine in the 2015/2016 season; reaching the Confederation Cup quarters and also the Algerian Cup semis. New challenge for Da Rosa After finishing in seventh place in the league last season, the 61-year-old Jesic was named as the Dervishes' new coach in August. The club's management was looking to return to being one of the Egyptian league's powerhouses by aiming for a top-four position. Unfortunately, the club had a poor start for the season under the helm of Jesic; winning twice and losing the three remaining matches out of five played under his helm. Ismaily currently lie in 11th place on the league table with 14 points from 11 matches, 16 points behind leaders Ahly, and hopes are now on Da Rosa to restore the balance and regain the team's best shape quickly. Ismaily had a poor 2018/2019 season, being eliminated from the African Champions League after finishing at the bottom of their group and failing to qualify for any continental competition this term after their lowly league finish. Last season, they played under three coaches, with the latest being Macedonian Cedomir Janevski, who was dismissed in April. Ismaily won the last of their three league titles in 2002. (For more sports news and updates, follow Ahram Online Sports on Twitter at @AO_Sports and on Facebook at AhramOnlineSports.)
