Liverpool have confirmed the appointment of Sammy Lee as their new assistant manager. He succeeds first-team coach Alex Miller, who left to take over as manager of Japanese outfit JEF United Ciba last week.

Lee, 49, has enjoyed successful spells at the club as both a player, winning three league titles and two European Cups, and a member of the backroom staff, working under Graeme Souness, Roy Evans and as first-team coach under Gérard Houllier.

Lee had left the club on the appointment of Rafa Benítez in 2004 to take up a full-time role in the England set-up, before joining Bolton as assistant to Sam Allardyce in 2005.

Lee succeeded Allardyce as manager at Bolton in April 2007, but a string of poor results saw him relieved of his duties just six months later.

The assistant manager's position has been a source of recent controversy at Liverpool, with some blaming the departure of the previous incumbent Pako Ayestaran at the start of the 2007-08 season for Liverpool's failure to challenge for the Premier League title.