Arsenal Legend Patrick Vieira has been appointed as the new manager of French Ligue 1 side OGC Nice.

The 41-year-old replaces Lucien Favre who was named the Borussia Dortmund manager in May.

Former Arsenal captain Vieira was in his third season as head coach of New York City before he stepped down from his post to take the Nice job.

On his exit from the Major League Soccer (MLS) side, Vieira said: “Leaving New York is an incredibly difficult decision for me and my family and one that has not been taken lightly.”

He takes charge of a Nice side who finished eighth in Ligue 1 last season under Favre and narrowly missing out on a Europa League place by one point.

The former AC Milan, Manchester City and Juventus midfielder had been strongly linked with the Arsenal job after Wenger’s exit shortly before Unai Emery landed the job.

Assistant coach Christian Lattanzio, performance coach Kristian Wilson and physical performance coach Matt Cook have all left New York City FC to join Vieira at the French Ligue 1 outfit.

The American side have quickly moved to replace him with Manchester City’s assistant manager Domenec Torrent who has worked with Pep Guardiola for 11 years.