Former captain of the team, Sergej Barbarez, will take over this role in the upcoming period. Our famous footballer will closely collaborate with his former teammate and another former captain, Emir Spahić.
On this occasion, a press conference was held today at the FFBiH premises, attended by the president Vico Zeljković, as well as Barbarez and Spahić, who addressed the media representatives.
In his introductory speech, president Zeljković said: "Before anything else, I want to congratulate Mr. Barbarez on his appointment as coach and Mr. Spahić on his appointment as the national team director. This day is certainly very important for football in Bosnia and Herzegovina. Here at the table we have two true legends, two big names, and we’re happy that we’ve found common ground and agreed to come out in front of the public with our team and do great things over the next four years. Right from the start, I want to express satisfaction that despite verbal disagreements from the past between the coach Barbarez and myself, we sat down together and reached a mature agreement. We've assessed the challenges the national team is facing and how to act so that football can take a better path."
Sergej Barbarez expressed his satisfaction with taking on the role of head coach: "It's surely a big thing for me, and hopefully for the FFBiH as well as for the national team. I come with great desire and pride. It would be unfair to comment on the past, so let's stick to our vision. We'll follow our path and be assured that it will be 100% fair and honest. Those who know me, know how it goes. We certainly have a perspective, which will be slightly different from what we've seen so far. We feel the need to change some things, and make them better with some new outlooks. That’s why this team around us was created. We go only forward as a team."
Emir Spahić also addressed those present: "First of all, all of this somehow happened and played out quickly. I'll take some time for myself for all of this to settle and calmly comment on the new situation. We'll proceed systematically, in agreement, and then we'll see how it looks like. I hope we'll snag some points and victories in our first year; that's really my wish. Big opponents, strong teams await us, we need to find players who will be able to carry this team on their shoulders in the next period."
Sergej Barbarez was born on September 17th 1971 in Mostar. During his playing career, he played for Velež Mostar, Hannover 96, Union Berlin, Hansa Rostock, Borussia Dortmund, Hamburger SV, and Bayer Leverkusen.
He played for the Bosnia and Herzegovina national team from 1998 to 2006, scoring 17 goals in 47 appearances.
