Vahid Halilhodžić facts for kids

Quick facts for kids
Vahid Halilhodžić

Halilhodžić as head coach of Algeria in 2014
Personal information
Date of birth	(1952-05-15) 15 May 1952 (age 73)
Place of birth	Jablanica, PR Bosnia and Herzegovina, Yugoslavia
Height	1.82 m
Playing position	Forward
Youth career
0000–1968	Turbina Jablanica
1968–1971	Velež Mostar
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps†	(Gls)†
1971–1981	Velež Mostar	207	(103)
1971–1972	→ Neretva (loan)	18	(8)
1981–1986	Nantes	163	(93)
1986–1987	Paris Saint-Germain	18	(8)
Total		406	(211)
National team
1975–1978	Yugoslavia U21	12	(12)
1976–1985	Yugoslavia	15	(8)
Teams managed
1990–1992	Velež Mostar
1993–1994	Beauvais
1997–1998	Raja Casablanca
1998–2002	Lille
2002–2003	Rennes
2003–2005	Paris Saint-Germain
2005–2006	Trabzonspor
2006	Al-Ittihad
2008–2010	Ivory Coast
2010–2011	Dinamo Zagreb
2011–2014	Algeria
2014	Trabzonspor
2015–2018	Japan
2018–2019	Nantes
2019–2022	Morocco
Honours Competitor for  Yugoslavia Gold UEFA U-21 Euro 1978
Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only. † Appearances (Goals).

Vahid Halilhodžić (born 15 May 1952) is a Bosnian professional football manager and former player. He is known for successfully coaching many national teams.

Vahid Halilhodžić was a great player for Velež Mostar and French teams Nantes and Paris Saint-Germain. He stopped playing in 1987. During his playing career, he played 15 games for the Yugoslavia national team. He also helped Yugoslavia win the 1978 European Under-21 Championship. He was the top scorer in the French league in 1983 and 1985.

In the early 1990s, Halilhodžić became a coach. He moved to France in 1993. Since then, he has managed many teams. He won the 1997 CAF Champions League with Raja Casablanca from Morocco. He also led Lille from the second division to third place in Ligue 1. He won the 2003–04 Coupe de France with Paris Saint-Germain. In 2011, he won the Croatian league with Dinamo Zagreb.

Halilhodžić also helped several national teams qualify for the World Cup. He qualified Ivory Coast for the 2010 World Cup. He also led Algeria to the 2014 World Cup, where they reached the Round of 16. This was Algeria's best World Cup result ever. Later, he qualified Japan for the 2018 World Cup. After coaching Nantes, he became the manager for the Morocco national team. He helped them qualify for the 2022 World Cup.

Vahid Halilhodžić's Football Journey

Playing Days: A Star Forward

Early Years and Velež Mostar

Vahid Halilhodžić was born in Jablanica. He started playing football as a teenager for a local team called Turbina Jablanica. The club's field was very close to his home. At first, he did not plan to become a professional player. He moved to Mostar at age 14 to study.

In Mostar, he started taking football more seriously. He joined the Yugoslav First League team Velež Mostar at 16. His brother, Salem, who was a striker for Velež, encouraged him. Vahid played for Velež's youth teams for two and a half years. After signing a professional contract, he was loaned to Neretva Metković to gain experience.

When he returned, he quickly joined Velež's main team in the 1972–73 season. He played well with Dušan Bajević. They helped Velež finish second in the league. Halilhodžić became a key player for Velež in the 1970s. He played 376 matches and scored 253 goals for the club. This included 207 games and 103 goals in the Yugoslav First League. In 1981, he helped Velež win their first major trophy, the Yugoslav Cup. He scored two goals in their 3–2 win against Željezničar.

French Adventures: Nantes and PSG

In September 1981, Halilhodžić moved to France to play for Nantes. His first year was a bit tough, but he soon became a regular player. He scored 7 goals in 28 games in the 1981–82 season. The next season, he helped Nantes win their sixth French championship. He was the league's top scorer with 27 goals in 36 games.

Halilhodžić played for Nantes for five years. He appeared in 163 league matches and scored 92 goals. He was also the league's top scorer in the 1984–85 season with 28 goals.

In 1986, Halilhodžić wanted to return to Mostar to be with his sick father. He asked Nantes for a very high salary so they would let him go. However, the chairman of Paris Saint-Germain (PSG), Francis Borelli, offered him a great deal. Halilhodžić signed a one-year contract with PSG. He played 18 games in the 1986–87 season and scored eight goals. Sadly, his mother passed away during that season. After this, Halilhodžić decided to stop playing football.

International Matches for Yugoslavia

Youth Success and Senior Team

Halilhodžić played 15 times for the Yugoslavia national team. He scored eight goals. He first played for the senior team in June 1976. In 1978, he also played for the Yugoslavia under-21 team. He helped them win the 1978 European Under-21 Championship. He was named the best player in that tournament. Halilhodžić was 26 at the time. Rules allowed two older players to join the under-21 squad.

His time with the national team had its ups and downs. Sometimes he played a lot, and sometimes he was left out. He made his debut as a substitute at UEFA Euro 1976. Yugoslavia lost that match 2–3 against Holland.

World Cup Appearances

Halilhodžić played in two games at the 1982 World Cup. He played for the last 15 minutes against Spain. He also played the entire second half against Honduras. The coach, Miljan Miljanić, preferred other forwards. Halilhodžić later said he was disappointed he didn't get to play more in the 1982 World Cup.

Coaching Career: Leading Teams to Success

Winning in Morocco: Raja Casablanca

In July 1997, Vahid Halilhodžić joined the Moroccan team Raja Casablanca. In his first season, he won the 1997 CAF Champions League in December 1997. He also won the Moroccan Championship in May 1998. These wins made him well-known internationally.

Building Up Lille and Rennes

Halilhodžić saluting Lille supporters

In October 1998, he went back to France to coach Lille. At that time, Lille was struggling in the French Division 2. In his first season, Lille finished fourth. In the 1999–2000 season, Halilhodžić's team was excellent. They finished first, 16 points ahead of the second-placed team. This earned them promotion to the top French league, Ligue 1.

Lille continued to play well the next season. They finished third in the 2000–01 French Division 1. This meant they qualified for the 2001–02 UEFA Champions League for the first time. The next season, Lille reached the Round of 16 in the 2001–02 UEFA Cup.

On 14 October 2002, he was hired by another Ligue 1 club, Rennes. His job was to save them from being relegated. Rennes had only 8 points from their first 10 games. Halilhodžić helped the team finish 15th, avoiding relegation. After his success with Lille and Rennes, many top clubs wanted him. In June 2003, he joined Paris Saint-Germain.

Paris Saint-Germain: A French Cup Win

In his first season with PSG, the club had a very successful year. They won the 2003–04 Coupe de France (French Cup). They also finished second in the 2003–04 Ligue 1, just three points behind Lyon. This qualified them for the 2004–05 Champions League.

However, Halilhodžić's second season at PSG was not as good. The team struggled in both the Champions League and the French league. On 8 February 2005, after a 0–2 loss at home, PSG dropped to 12th place. The club decided to let Halilhodžić go.

Trabzonspor and Ivory Coast

On 2 October 2005, Halilhodžić signed with the Turkish team Trabzonspor. He led the club to fourth place in the 2005–06 Süper Lig. This qualified them for the 2006–07 UEFA Cup. However, Halilhodžić left Turkey in June 2006 after just one season.

In May 2008, Halilhodžić was hired to coach the Ivory Coast national team. The team included famous players like Didier Drogba and Yaya Touré. They had a two-year unbeaten run in African qualifiers. They qualified for both the 2010 Africa Cup of Nations and the 2010 FIFA World Cup. However, in January 2010, Ivory Coast was knocked out of the Africa Cup of Nations by Algeria. This was a big disappointment. Halilhodžić was fired on 27 February 2010, less than four months before the 2010 World Cup.

Dinamo Zagreb and Algeria's World Cup Run

Back in Europe, Halilhodžić became the new manager of Croatian champions Dinamo Zagreb on 16 August 2010. He signed a two-and-a-half-year contract. Fans liked Halilhodžić right away because Dinamo started playing exciting, attacking football. On 16 September 2010, he led Dinamo to a 2–0 win over Spanish team Villarreal in the Europa League. Dinamo did not make it past the group stage, but Halilhodžić had the support of fans and the club.

In the 2010–11 Croatian First League, Dinamo was far ahead of other teams. They won the league title months before the season ended. However, there were problems with his contract. On 6 May 2011, he left the club after an argument with Dinamo's president.

On 22 June 2011, Halilhodžić became the manager of the Algeria national team. He signed a three-year contract. He successfully led Algeria through the 2013 Africa Cup of Nations qualification. At the final tournament, Algeria finished last in their group. Despite this, the Algerian Football Federation kept Halilhodžić as coach.

Algeria then focused on the 2014 World Cup qualifiers. On 19 November 2013, Algeria qualified for the World Cup. This was only the fourth time the country had qualified in 32 years.

Algeria's performance at the 2014 World Cup in Brazil was a big surprise. They beat South Korea 4–2 and drew with Russia 1–1. This meant they moved past the group stage for the first time in their history. In the Round of 16, Algeria played against a very strong Germany team. Algeria played very well, but they lost 1–2 in extra time. Germany later went on to win the World Cup.

Algeria's performance was their biggest success ever. Halilhodžić was praised for his smart tactics and calm leadership. He was offered a new contract, but he left the team on 7 July 2014.

Coaching Japan: World Cup Qualification

On 12 March 2015, Vahid Halilhodžić was officially appointed as the new manager of the Japan national team. He replaced Javier Aguirre.

In September 2016, the 2018 World Cup qualifying final round began. Japan, Saudi Arabia, and Australia were among the teams competing for two direct spots. In their first match, Japan lost 1–2 to the UAE. The Japanese media questioned Halilhodžić's player choices.

Media criticism of Halilhodžić continued. He changed Japan's usual playing style, focusing on strong challenges and fast football. He made some surprising decisions, like not always picking star players like Keisuke Honda and Shinji Kagawa.

Japan's performance was not always consistent, but they won important games. They beat Saudi Arabia 2–1 in November 2016 to finish the first half of the group in first place. In August 2017, they beat Australia 2–0 to secure their spot in the 2018 FIFA World Cup. At these moments, the Japanese media agreed with his strategies. However, questions came up again after poor friendly matches in October and November.

In December, Halilhodžić used a less experienced team for the 2017 East Asian Cup. This team lost to South Korea 1–4. Halilhodžić was dismissed in early April 2018. The JFA president said that poor results and a lack of communication with players were the reasons.

Return to Nantes and Morocco's World Cup Spot

In October 2018, Halilhodžić became the new manager of FC Nantes. This was a club he had played for. His first win came on 22 October when Nantes beat Toulouse 4–0.

On 5 May 2019, Nantes beat Dijon 3–0 at home. Halilhodžić set a club record by winning five Ligue 1 matches in a row. This had not happened in over 18 years for the club. Nantes beat Lyon, Paris Saint-Germain, Amiens, Marseille, and Dijon to achieve this record.

On 2 August 2019, Halilhodžić decided to leave Nantes. This was due to disagreements with the club's owner.

In August 2019, it was confirmed that Halilhodžić would become the new manager of the Morocco national team. His first win came on 10 September when Morocco beat Niger 1–0. On 29 March 2022, Halilhodžić helped Morocco qualify for the 2022 World Cup. They beat DR Congo in the qualifiers.

On 11 August 2022, Halilhodžić was officially let go by the Royal Moroccan Football Federation. This was because of disagreements about the team's future. This was the third time Halilhodžić was let go before a World Cup tournament, even after successfully helping the team qualify.

Life Off the Field

Vahid Halilhodžić became a French citizen on 13 June 1997.

In 2001, he visited Mostar and said it was hard to see how much things had changed. He said he could only stay for a day or two because it made him sad.

On 23 July 2004, while managing PSG, Halilhodžić received the Chevalier of the Légion d'honneur. This is a very important award from the French Republic. Halilhodžić is married and has two children. His main home is in Lille, France, where his family lives.

Vahid has said he felt like a "Yugoslav" and was very sad when Yugoslavia broke apart. He speaks Bosnian and French.

Career Numbers

Goals for Yugoslavia

Scores and results table. Yugoslavia's goal tally first.

#	Date	Venue	Opponent	Score	Result	Competition
1	4 October 1978	Stadion Maksimir, Zagreb, Yugoslavia	Spain	1–2	1–2	UEFA Euro 1980 qualifying
2	15 November 1978	Gradski Stadion, Skopje, Yugoslavia	Greece	1–1	4–1	1977-80 Balkan Cup
3				3–1
4				4–1
5	25 March 1981	Gradski Stadion, Subotica, Yugoslavia	Bulgaria	1–0	2–1	Friendly
6	29 April 1981	Stadion Poljud, Split, Yugoslavia	Greece	2–0	5–1	1982 FIFA World Cup qualification
7	21 November 1981	Karađorđe Stadium, Novi Sad, Yugoslavia	Luxembourg	1–0	5–0	1982 FIFA World Cup qualification
8				2–0

Coaching Record

Awards and Trophies

Player

Velež Mostar

• Yugoslav Cup: 1980–81

Nantes

• Division 1: 1982–83

Yugoslavia U21

• UEFA European Under-21 Championship: 1978

Individual

• UEFA European Under-21 Championship Golden Player: 1978
• Ligue 1 Foreign Player of the Year: 1984, 1985

Manager

Raja Casablanca

• CAF Champions League: 1997
• Botola: 1997–98
• CAF Super Cup runner-up: 1998

Lille

• Division 2: 1999–2000

Paris Saint-Germain

• Coupe de France: 2003–04

Dinamo Zagreb

• 1. HNL: 2010–11

Individual

• Division 2 Trainer of the Year: 1999
• French Manager of the Year: 2001

Orders

• Chevalier of the Légion d'honneur: 2004

Images for kids

• 

  Algeria players training with Halilhodžić in January 2013

• 

  Halilhodžić with President of Ivory Coast Laurent Gbagbo in May 2008

See also

In Spanish: Vahid Halilhodžić para niños