Balakov - who previously managed Croatian club Hajduk Split, Swiss club St Gallen and was an assistant at VfB Stuttgart until 2005 - penned a deal that will see him stay at Kaiserslautern until June 30, 2013.

He replaces Marco Kurz, who was sacked Tuesday after 16 games without a win to his team's name.

Chairman Stefan Kuntz said: "We are convinced that [Balakov] can help us in the fight to avoid relegation and beyond. Even in the event of relegation he will be working with the aim of going straight back up."

Balakov spent eight years playing as a midfielder with Stuttgart before his retirement in 2003. He was capped 92 times for Bulgaria, scoring 16 goals.

He had earlier confirmed he was leaving Hadjuk Split to take the reins at the Bundesliga club.

"In football, there are no guarantees," he said. "I took the offer from Kaiserslautern because I believe it can be well, that we can pull out and avoid relegation. It is most important that I quickly take hold of the strings ahead of the match with Freiburg."

The Red Devils are languishing at the foot of the Bundesliga ladder on 20 points after 26 games, having recorded three wins and 11 draws all season.

dfm/ng (Reuters, dpa)