The Bahrain Football Association announced on Monday that it had mutually agreed to terminate the contract of the national team’s coaching staff, led by Croatian coach Dragan Talajic, five days after Bahrain lost its Gulf Cup title in Jeddah.
اضافة اعلان
In a statement posted on its Instagram account, the Bahrain Football Association said: “The Board of Directors of the Bahrain Football Association extends its thanks and appreciation for the efforts made by the technical staff of the senior national team, led by Croatian coach Dragan Talajic, during the past period, wishing them continued success in their future careers.”
The association added that its board would review a number of coaching résumés in the coming period before selecting a new candidate and announcing the identity of the national team’s technical staff, particularly with the team’s upcoming commitments, most notably the 2027 AFC Asian Cup finals in Saudi Arabia.
Bahrain lost its Gulf Cup title at the end of last month after suffering three consecutive defeats in the group stage, the latest a heavy 5-2 loss to Yemen. The campaign began with a 2-0 defeat to Qatar, followed by a 3-0 loss to the UAE.
The Bahrain Football Association appointed Talajic on February 20, 2024, replacing Argentine coach Juan Antonio Pizzi, whose contract had also been terminated by mutual consent following Bahrain’s participation in the AFC Asian Cup finals in Doha.
The 60-year-old Talajic, who was born in Sarajevo, was appointed in part because of his familiarity with Bahraini football. He previously led Al Khaldiya to the Bahrain Cup title in 2022 before joining the Bahrain Football Association as technical director.
Talajic spent most of his coaching career in the Middle East and the Gulf. His clubs included Saudi Arabia’s Al-Ittihad, whom he led to the AFC Champions League title in 2004, as well as Bahrain’s Al-Riffa and East Riffa, Oman’s Al-Nahda and Dhofar, Jordan’s Shabab Al-Ordon, Al-Wehdat and Al-Faisaly, Kuwait SC, UAE’s Kalba, and Saudi Arabia’s Al-Tai. He also coached Thailand’s Muangthong United and China’s Henan Jianye.
AFP
