Halilhodzic tells the scenes of the discovery of Soleimani and Mahrez – New Algeria

Vahid Halilhodzic, the former coach of the Algerian national football team, revealed the story of his discovery of the “Greens” stars, Islam Slimani and Riyad Mahrez.

Vahid Halilhodzic led the technical staff of the Algerian national football team, from the summer of 2011 to the summer of 2014. He contributed to the qualification of the “Desert Warriors” to the finals of the 2014 World Cup in Brazil. During which it reached the quarter-finals for the first time in the history of Algeria’s participation in the final rounds of the FIFA World Cup.

Halilhodzic said in statements to the French sports television program “Campo.” And transferred to the site “Al Ain NewsAl-Emirati, yesterday, Friday: “I discovered Soleimani by chance while watching one of the matches of the Belouizdad Youth Club.”

He added, explaining: “At that time, I was looking for a strong striker who was good at handling high balls and capable of winning duels.”

He continued Bosnian coach He said, “But not all parties, including the fans, the media, and even the president of the Football Association (Mohamed Rourawa) at that time, accepted this decision. Several personal accusations were made against me, including receiving money from the players.”

Halilhodzic continued: “I did not surrender in the face of all these criticisms and I stuck to my decision, which was correct in the end.”

Regarding Riyad Mahrez, Halilhodzic said: “The same scenario was repeated before the 2014 World Cup finals, where Riyad Mahrez caught my attention while I was watching one of Leicester City’s matches.”

He added: “During that period, Mahrez lacked depth in his playing style. This was despite his high technical capabilities. When he was invited to join the Algerian national team, he was subjected to a strong attack, as several parties rejected this idea because he did not participate in the African qualifiers for the World Cup.”

He concluded: “I did not weaken in the face of this criticism, and my decision was again correct, as Mahrez became one of the best players in the English Premier League years later.”

The Bosnian coach played 30 matches with the national team, in various competitions, during which he achieved victories on 18 occasions, compared to 5 draws and 7 defeats.