Portugal's Fernando Santos has been appointed as the new coach of Greece. The executive board of the Greek Football Federation (EPO) on Thursday unanimously voted to appoint Santos to the post for the next two years, taking the team through to the Euro 2012 qualification round.

An announcement by EPO said that Santos will be giving a press conference on Friday.

Santos, 55, will be getting a reported 500,000 euros a year for coaching the squad, about half of what the Greeks were giving Rehhagel.

Greece manager Otto Rehhagel has named his final 23-man squad for the World Cup in South Africa.

Liverpool defender Sotiris Kyrgiakos and Celtic striker Giorgos Samaras have both been picked.

Greece shocked the football world when they won the European Championships in 2004 but they have been unable to follow up that success.

They failed to qualify for the 2006 World Cup and lost all three games in the 2008 European Championships.

They made it to South Africa after beating Ukraine in a play-off, having finished second to Switzerland in their group.

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Greece coach Otto Rehhagel on Tuesday strongly denied reports that he had held contract talks with the Greek Football Federation (EPO).

"It is not normal for me to talk about press reports, but I am obliged to do so because what was written about me talking to the president of the federation about my contract, and in which I was not happy, is totally false," the German insisted.

Greece's World Cup preparations suffered a blow after going down to a 2-0 defeat at home to Senegal.

Goals from Mamadou Niang and Guirane Ndaw were enough to give Senegal a morale-boosting win after they missed out on this summer's World Cup finals.

Senegal started the brighter of the two sides and Greek keeper Alexandros Tzorvas came to his side's rescue on the half hour mark when he saved Niang's shot with his legs.

The visitors continued to dominate in the second half with Niang twice being denied by substitute keeper Kostas Chalkias.