His muscular methods are known in France, where he trained players from Lille, Rennes and Paris Saint Germain. Madjid Bougherra, defender of the Algerian team, describes him very well: “He is hard when he works, meticulous in everything he does. But outside, when training is over, and especially when we win, he is very close to players.” We love him… He is a good person, despite his hard side.”
Vahid Halilhodzic sets Algerian national team Fennecs on their way to their first round of 16 match at the World Cup. A win against Russia next Thursday, or even a draw, will be enough to continue the adventure…
Vahid Halihodzic is a born winner. He is 62 years old and comes from Jablanica, a small town in Herzegovina. With “Velez” from Mostar he is champion of Yugoslavia, but he is always blocked by players who play in Serbian or Croatian clubs.
Vahid Halilhodzic, a ‘tough guy’ with a soft heart
In 1981, Halilhodzic began his odyssey and arrived at FC Nantes, then managed by Jean Claude Suandeau. Champion of France, he was crowned best footballer in 1983. After five seasons, Halilhodzic was finally in Paris where he ended his football career at PSG in glory.
When he returned to Mostar with his loved ones, he imagined a quiet life as a restaurateur near the green and crystal clear Neretva River. But war broke out and Halilhodzic narrowly escaped death.
As a refugee in France in 1993, he looked after the modest Beauvais team and then endured a three-year period of unemployment. Thanks to Henri Michel, he went to Morocco to coach the Raja Casablanca team and won the Champions League.
The success brought him again to France, where he devoted himself to LOSC players. Still two seasons to go from the second division to the club that plays in the Champions League. After a four-year stay in Lille, he replaced Philippe Berjeroo at Stade Rennais. Halilhodzic achieved the impossible: the team remained in the first division. This earned him an invitation from PSG, where he arrived in the summer of 2003. But he was fired on February 8, 2005.
Vahid Halilhodzic, enomadic eternal
Vaha, the legend of Mostar and pride of Bosnia and Herzegovina, then left for Turkey to coach the club Trabzonspor. He achieved fantastic results, but his eternal nomadic heart led him to Saudi Arabia and shortly afterwards he became coach of the Ivory Coast national team.
In August 2006, Halilhodzic joined the club “Dinamo” from Zagreb. The players quickly win the Croatian championship. The legendary ‘coach’ is leaving again, after an argument with the club chairman.
On June 22, 2011, he was hired by the Algerian Football Federation. On November 13, he managed to qualify Algeria for the World Cup by beating Burkina Faso. Vahid Halihodzic has Bosnian and French nationality and is also a Knight of the Legion of Honor.
