Soccer-Berdyev takes over as coach of Russian strugglers Rostov

MOSCOW, Dec 18 (Reuters) - Former Rubin Kazan boss Kurban Berdyev took over as coach of bottom of the table Russian Premier League side Rostov on Thursday. The 62-year-old signed a contract until the end of the 2014-15 campaign and was handed the task of "finishing the season strongly", the club said on their website (www.fc-rostov.ru). Berdyev helped Rubin qualify for the Champions League twice by winning the Russian title in 2008 and 2009. He takes over from Igor Gamula who will now work with the club's youth teams. Rostov resume after the winter break with a fixture against Lokomotiv Moscow on March 7. (Reporting by Dmitriy Rogovitskiy, editing by Tony Jimenez)