Dutch football legend Ruud Gullit's decision to take his "sexy football" to Chechnya's Terek Grozny will add international spice to a team that has emerged from the ruins of war into a top Russian side.

The provincial team from the war-ravaged Russian region said the surprising swoop for its new manager came entirely thanks to Chechnya's ruler Ramzan Kadyrov - a man the West accuses of abductions and other violations.

Few would argue the former Dutch superstar and the former Chechen warlord make for an odd couple.

The one-time Dutch skipper once bragged trademark dreadlocks that attracted almost as much attention as his sublime touch passes on the pitch.

Kadyrov, meanwhile, has made his reputation by being a ruthless warrior who fought Russian troops as a teenager before cleverly switching sides when the timing was right.

Yet Kadyrov said he was convinced that this was a match made in heaven would make people notice Grozny for all the right reasons again.

"Our team will now battle for the right to play in the Euroleague," Kadyrov was quoted as saying by Interfax from the Chechen capital.