Brazil's Santos team coach Jorge Sampaoli gestures during the Copa Sudamericana football match against Uruguay's River Plate at the Pacaembu stadium in Sao Paulo, Brazil, on Feb 26, 2019. (MIGUEL SCHINCARIOL / AFP)

RIO DE JANEIRO - Former Argentina and Chile boss Jorge Sampaoli has been appointed head coach of Atletico Mineiro, the Brazilian club's president said on Sunday.

Sampaoli replaces Venezuelan Rafael Dudamel, who was sacked last week after the team's poor start to the new season.

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"It's confirmed. Sampaoli is our new manager," Atletico president Sergio Sette Camara said on Twitter.

In the past 10 days, the Belo Horizonte side have been eliminated from both the Brazilian Cup and the Copa Sudamericana - South America's equivalent of the Europa League.

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Sampaoli had been without a club since December, having parted ways with Brazilian giants Santos after just one season in charge.

The 59-year-old Argentinian, who guided Chile to their first Copa America title in 2015, has also coached Sevilla and was Argentina's boss at the 2018 Word Cup in Russia.