It is now official! The Algerian Football Federation (FAF) has a new coach. He is the Serbian, Milovan Rajevac. The information was published Sunday afternoon by FAF on its official website.

The Serbian takes over from Christian Gourcuff, who quit of his own decision at the beginning of April, after expressing the wish to retake a club. Milovan Rajevac will lead in his first official match in the beginning of September when Lesotho will be received at the Mustapha Tchaker stadium of Blida for the sixth and last play day of the AFCON 2017 qualifiers.

FAF equally announces that the concerned signed his contract Sunday morning, during his meeting with Mohamed Raouraoua. The two men were agreed on all the details of the collaboration contract between the two parties.

Milovan Rajevac will be coach of the “fennecs” through July 2018, with an option of having him present during the 2019 AFCON, which will take place in Cameroon, in the event of him meeting his assigned objectives. That is: making it to the semi-finals of the 2017 AFCON in Gabon and picking up a qualification ticket for the 2018 World Cup.

Milovan Rajevac has had a two-year experience in Africa between 2008 and 2010. He has been coach of the Ghanaian U-20s, and then took command of the national team, where he first of all succeeded by qualifying for the World Cup. He took part in the 2010 AFCON finals in Angola with the Black Stars. In the World Cup of the same year, Rajevac made history by slightly missing a semi-finals qualification of a World Cup with Ghana.

Milovan Rajevac will officially start his job as of the 1st of July. The official presentation of the new coach will be done on July 12.
The staff that worked with Christian Gourcuff will continue. Nabil Neghiz will remain as the deputy coach. Yazid Mansouri stays as overall manager of the team. Guillaume Marie will continue with physical preparation. Finally, concerning goal keepers, the Belhadji-Bolly duo will be maintained also.