After nearly nine years, Umberto Barberis returns to the Lausanne football team to replace Radu Nunweiler as their coach.

Barberis was brought in to help Lausanne regain top division status in this spring's relegation-promotion round.

The Romanian national Nunweiler was dismissed after a disappointing qualifying round in which the canton Vaud club never looked like reaching next year's championship round.

"We had to change something about the player's mentality in order to get through the qualifying round. Barberis is well acquainted with football, our club and the environment, even though he has not worked as a coach for a few years," said president Bernard Jaton.

However, Nunweiler has been asked to stay on as the trainer of the junior football team and take over responsibility for the scouting.

The 53-year-old will stay with the team until the last match of the qualifying round, which takes place this Sunday. Barberis will take over on January 7 next year.

Barberis has not worked as a coach since he left Servette in 1996, however, the 49-year-old has plenty of experience.

He began his football career in 1970, when he played for Grasshoppers, Servette and Monaco. He went on to coach Lausanne from 1987 to 1993, before he trained Sion and Servette.

At the beginning of the 90s he was considered to become coach of the national football team, however, Roy Hodgson was chosen to succeed Uli Stielike.

swissinfo with agencies

In compliance with the JTI standards

More: SWI swissinfo.ch certified by the Journalism Trust Initiative