* Bank focus on Turkey, Russia, Poland, Czech Republic - CEO
* No plans to resize in Germany - CEO
* No need for more provisions, profits on rebound - CEO
* CEO removes uncertainties, but main issues remain-analyst
* Shares down, outpace sector drop
(Adds news conference details, analyst's comment)
By Ian Simpson
MILAN, Oct 1 (Reuters) - Federico Ghizzoni, the new chief executive of Italy's biggest bank UniCredit, vowed on Friday to only finetune its strategy and focus on big countries in the fast-growing central and east European region.
Ghizzoni, named on Thursday to replace Alessandro Profumo as head of Italy's most international bank, reaffirmed UniCredit's aim of growing in Europe but it will be more selective in its use of capital and in strategic choices, he said.
"We will definitely concentrate on larger countries where we already have a strong presence," Ghizzoni, the hitherto low-profile deputy chief executive for central and eastern Europe, told a packed news conference.
"Countries like Poland, Turkey, Russia, countries in central Europe like the Czech Republic. That is, countries where we already are market leader and we aim to grow further," said Ghizzoni, 54, in his first extensive public comments as head of UniCredit.
Although growth could come from acquisitions, UniCredit will focus on organic expansion, he said. UniCredit is the biggest lender in central and eastern Europe and gets about a quarter of its revenues from there.
He said the bank was confident its profits were on the rebound and it had no need for further loan-loss provisions. "We don't have any skeletons hidden in the drawer," he said.
Ghizzoni denied media speculation about the bank's possible break-up, with German and Austria assets being hived off.
He also vowed to carry through a contentious Italian restructuring started by his predecessor and aimed at folding seven local units into the main bank.
Profumo had been Europe's longest-serving bank CEO until he quit after a clash with shareholders over Libyan stake-building and lagging profits.
The Libyan central bank -- UniCredit's third biggest shareholder with a 4.99 percent stake -- said on Friday it would not go above 5 percent, the limit for voting rights. Tripoli's sovereign wealth fund has a further 2.59 percent holding.
Profumo's streamlining plan had also ruffled the feathers of the Italian non-profit foundations among its shareholders, who feared local job losses and a drop in influence.
TIGHT KNIT
Addressing the possible exit of top managers, including retail chief Roberto Nicastro, Ghizzoni called the executive team "tight knit", adding: "I hope that continues."
Analysts have said Nicastro, a Profumo protege who had been one of the front runners to replace him, might go since he did not get the top job.
Ghizzoni said he would start work on picking a director general -- a newly created post which is meant to balance the power at the top -- next week.
APPOINTMENT WELCOME, DOUBTS REMAIN
The son of a Latin professor, the bookish Ghizzoni was born in Piacenza and holds a law degree. A 30-year veteran of UniCredit and its predecessor, he has worked in Britain, Singapore, Turkey and Poland and run central and eastern European operations since 2007.
Analysts welcomed Ghizzoni's appointment, citing his experience in central and eastern Europe and the management continuity his promotion brings.
It "removes most of the uncertainties and should not drive any significant changes in the group strategy in the short term", Citibank said in a report.
Shares in UniCredit were down 1.7 percent at 1.84 euros at 1502 GMT, when the STOXX Europe 600 banking sector index was 0.9 percent lower. (Additional reporting by Nigel Tutt; Editing by Will Waterman, Greg Mahlich)