The 27-year-old Frenchman has agreed a four-year deal at Ewood Park after a number of good performances in the second half of the season.

Givet was initially brought in by Sam Allardyce in mid-January, just over a month after the former Bolton Wanderers and Newcastle United manager replaced the sacked Paul Ince.

His versatility at being able to play at left-back and centre-half helped him settle very quickly into English football and Allardyce had no hesitation in offering him a permanent deal.

Allardyce said: "It is a critical signing. Gael made a massive impact last season while on loan here and I think he can get even better.

"A player coming from abroad would usually need a fair amount of time to adjust to the different culture, the different climate and the different way of doing things.

"This lad took about two weeks to find his feet. It isn't often that a player makes such a massive contribution from day one, particularly in January."

Givet has played 13 times for France and is a former Monaco player. He helped the latter progress to the 2004 Champions League final where his side were beaten by Jose Mourinho's Porto.