Bosnia-Herzegovina’s head coach Safet Susic has been relieved of his duties following a dismal opening to their European qualification campaign.
Appointed in December 2009, Susic came under criticism after just six games in charge of the national team, securing just two wins while subsiding to a diminishing 2-0 defeat to France in Euro 2012 qualification.
However, after Sunday’s 3-0 defeat to Israel saw the Dragons slump to second-from-bottom in Group B, securing just two points from their opening four matches, Susic has now been sacked in an attempt by the Bosnian Football Federation to find an amendment in form.
During his five years with the nation, the former Paris Saint-Germain midfielder, led Bosnia-Herzegovina to their first ever World Cup finals, finishing third in Group F. Despite a dominating 3-1 victory over Iran in their concluding fixture, earlier defeats to Nigeria, and finalists Argentina, saw Bosnia settle for third place.
Their hopes of qualifying for the 2016 European Championships also look to be fading, having begun with a 2-1 defeat to Cyprus. Despite taking points in morale-boosting draws against Wales and Belgium, Sunday’s humiliation in Haifa has dented qualification aspirations.
With the nation next facing Andorra in March 2015, the football federation should have an extensive time period to find a replacement, with his assistant coaches also dismissed. A statement on the website read:
"Safet Susic has been released from duty, which applies to his assistants Borceta Sredojevica, Elvira Baljic and Tomislav Piplica.”
The manager-less Dragons now trail Israel, the group leaders, by seven points, as well as Wales by six and Cyprus by four.