'Real Sociedad have reached an agreement with St Etienne so that John Toshack can rescind the contract that he had signed with the club,' Real Sociedad said on their official website.

'At the same time Real Sociedad have also reached a deal with John Toshack, which has still to be signed, which will see him take over as coach until June 2003.'

French first division side St Etienne confirmed that Toshack, a former Real Madrid coach and striker for Wales, would be leaving them after less than three months in charge.

Real said they planned to present Toshack as their new coach at the Anoeta stadium on Wednesday.

Joel Muller, who was sacked last week by Metz, is the leading candidate to replace Toshack at St Etienne, local media reports said.

Real Sociedad are in the middle of one of the worst crises in their 90-year history.

They have been through two coaches this season in Javier Clemente and Periko Alonso, while club president Luis Uranga has announced his decision to resign his post as soon as possible.

The team are anchored to the bottom of the table with 12 points from 16 games and were eliminated from the King's Cup in the first round after an embarrassing defeat by third division neighbours Beasain.

Toshack returns to Real with the specific aim of saving the club from relegation. The last time they dropped into the second division was in 1962. They returned to the top flight in 1967.

The 51-year-old Welshman has always enjoyed close ties with the club and the Basque region and he still owns a property in the San Sebastian area. He has already managed Real Sociedad for more matches than any other coach in the club's history.

He won the King's Cup with them during his first spell in charge between 1985 and 1989, before moving to Real Madrid.

He returned to San Sebastian between 1991 and 1994 before moving on to Deportivo Coruna, Besiktas and back to Real Madrid.

Following his second sacking from the Bernabeu, he joined St Etienne in October this year and has since guided the club away from the relegation zone.

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Toshack won 40 caps and scored 13 goals for Wales in his playing career. At club level, he was a leading light at Liverpool, Cardiff City and Swansea, where he began his managerial career as player-manager in 1979.

He has also coached Sporting Lisbon and the Welsh national sides.

Players at the Basque club welcomed the news of Toshack's return.

Defender Jose Antonio Pikabea, who was at the club when Toshack last coached there, said his appointment could be decisive.

'The squad has a lot of respect for him. He has been in charge of big teams and is a man with a strong and demanding character just as a coach should be,' the 30-year-old player told reporters. Turkish international midfielder Tayfun Korkut said that Toshack was highly regarded in Turkey.

'My friends at Besiktas have always said that he was a very good coach. He is a good choice for the club given our situation at the moment.'