Argentine backrow forward Kremer signs for Clermont

Argentine back row forward Marcos Kremer fits the bill for "players with character and ambition" who can restore Clermont's fortunes, said head coach Christophe Urios after he signed for the Top 14 side from Stade Francais on Sunday.

Kremer, 25, will join Clermont after this year's World Cup as he is expected to be a key player for the Pumas in rugby's quadrennial showpiece event which is being hosted by France.

Kremer, capped 56 times since making his debut aged 19, will leave Stade after a three-year stay.

"This signing is consistent with the others we have made, top level players with character and ambition," Urios said in a statement on the club website.

"They are players that we need to put us back on the rails. Marcos Kremer is a great battler, a player who lays down the law and who we require to add power to the scrum."

Kremer joins Australian international hooker Folau Fainga'a and fiery French prop Mohamed Haouas as fresh faces for next season.

The combative Urios was brought in by the two-time French champions in January to replace Jono Gibbes after he was sacked with Clermont struggling in 10th spot.

They have risen just one spot to ninth since his arrival and were at the wrong end of a 34-6 hammering by Montpellier on Saturday.