Halilhodzic set for PSG

Vahid Halilhodzic has agreed to become the next coach of Paris Saint-Germain FC.

Four-year deal
"We talked until late last night and we fixed the last details this morning," PSG chairman Francis Graille said after a four-year contract was agreed. Halilhodzic, who had already announced he would be leaving Stade Rennais FC in the summer, will be officially named tomorrow as successor to Luis Fernandez who will relinquish the reins at the Parc des Princes club at the end of the season.

Fruitful relationship
Halilhodzic's appointment means he will resume his working relationship with Graille, which bore fruit during their time together at LOSC. They lifted LOSC from the second division to a place in the UEFA Champions League in a three-year spell between 1999 and 2001. Halilhodzic's brief will be to bring PSG their first trophy since the French Cup triumph in 1998.

Survival mission
First Halilhodzic, who turns 50 on Thursday, will try to secure Rennes' survival in Ligue 1. He took over the club on 18 October when they were bottom of the table and has lifted them out of the relegation zone and into 17th place, albeit only on goal difference. Rennes travel to Paris to play PSG next week.

PSG old boy
Halilhodzic, a former Yugoslavian international striker, played for PSG in the late 1980s, following a successful spell with FC Nantes Atlantique. He began his coaching career with FK Velez in Bosnia-Herzegovina, the club where he made his name as a player, before winning the African Champions League with Moroccan club Raja Casablanca in 1997. He joined LOSC the following year.