Belgian Ariel Jacobs expressed his confidence in reviving the fortunes of struggling Ligue 1 side Valenciennes after the French club appointed him coach on Monday.

The 60-year-old replaces Daniel Sanchez, sacked last week by the club who are bottom of the French top flight with just four points from nine games.

"I'm aware of the difficulty of the mission but I'm reassured by what I've heard from club bosses," Jacobs told a press conference in northeastern France.

"The task will be very complex, it will be difficult, but possible.

"In any group which finds itself in such a situation you can expect a lack of confidence linked to a lack of points.

"That leads to a drop in performance, added to bad luck. My work will be primarily psychological, but the players themselves must rebuild trust individually and collectively," explained Jacobs.

Jacobs won the Belgian league twice with Anderlecht and last year guided FC Copenhagen to the Danish title. He also won two Cup titles in Belgium with La Louviere in 2003 and 2008 with Anderlecht.

He added: "You never win or lose alone. I place huge importance in the team spirit."

Jacobs has been give a two-year deal with an option for an additional year with Valenciennes, a town close to the border with his native Belgium.

"After ending its association with Daniel Sanchez, VAFC have decided to hand the post of coach to Ariel Jacobs," the club said in a statement earlier Monday.

Sanchez paid the price for a series of seven consecutive defeats.

He had kept Valenciennes in the top flight the past two seasons despite struggling to 12th and 11th place respectively.

But the team were further weakened by the inter-season exit of Gael Danic, Carlos Sanchez, Remi Gomis and Nicolas Isimat-Mirin.