{"id":7284,"date":"2026-07-13T13:38:04","date_gmt":"2026-07-13T13:38:04","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/movinginsiderusa.com\/?p=7284"},"modified":"2026-07-13T13:38:04","modified_gmt":"2026-07-13T13:38:04","slug":"slaven-bilic-returns-to-croatia-job-to-succeed-greatest-coach-zlatko-dalic","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/movinginsiderusa.com\/?p=7284","title":{"rendered":"Slaven Bili\u0107 returns to Croatia job to succeed ‘greatest’ coach Zlatko Dali\u0107"},"content":{"rendered":"
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\"\"<\/figure>\n\n
FILE – The then-Croatia\u2019s head coach Slaven Bilic talks to his players during a training session of Croatia at the Euro 2012 soccer championship in Warka, Poland, Tuesday, June 5, 2012. (AP Photo\/Darko Bandic, File)<\/figcaption>\n<\/figure>\n

ZAGREB, Croatia \u2014 Slaven Bili\u0107 is back as coach of Croatia after the team\u2019s most successful coach Zlatko Dali\u0107<\/a> left following the World Cup<\/a> .<\/p>

Read more Barcelona agrees to sign Karim Adeyemi, says president Joan Laporta<\/a><\/p>\n

Bili\u0107 returns to a job he left 14 years ago, after six years in charge, with experience of coaching in the Premier League with West Ham and West Bromwich, as well as in Turkey and Saudi Arabia.<\/p>\n

\u201cI am genuinely happy to start this challenge and I feel fully prepared for it \u2014 as a more mature and experienced coach than in 2006, yet with the same motivation and desire to see Croatia stay powerful, bold, and successful,\u201d Bili\u0107 said in a statement.<\/p>\n

He takes over a Croatia team which exited the World Cup amid a blizzard of recriminations<\/a> . Its last-gasp equalizer was ruled offside over the lightest of touches detected by a sensor in the ball, ensuring a 2-1 loss to Portugal<\/a> in the round of 32.<\/p>

Read more Police investigate the death of South Africa World Cup soccer player Jayden Adams<\/a><\/p>\n

That ended nine years in charge for Dali\u0107, who led Croatia to its only World Cup final in 2018, a loss to France, and then third place in 2022. The national soccer federation hailed him as the \u201cgreatest Croatian coach of all time\u201d on a social media graphic when he stepped down last week.<\/p>\n

Bili\u0107 was a standout defender on the team which was third at the 1998 World Cup, a landmark result for the then-newly independent nation. His last coaching job was with Saudi club Al Fateh from July 2023 to August 2024.<\/p>

Read more Jannik Sinner keeps evolving his game. Just like Federer, Nadal and Djokovic before him<\/a><\/p>\n

___<\/p>\n

See more of AP\u2019s World Cup coverage here<\/a><\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Slaven Bili\u0107 is back as coach of Croatia after the team\u2019s most successful coach Zlatko Dali\u0107 left following the World Cup<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":7282,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-7284","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-interesting"],"yoast_head":"\nSlaven Bili\u0107 returns to Croatia job to succeed 'greatest' coach Zlatko Dali\u0107 - Moving Insider USA<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/movinginsiderusa.com\/?p=7284\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Slaven Bili\u0107 returns to Croatia job to succeed 'greatest' coach Zlatko Dali\u0107 - 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