Frenchman Christian Gourcuff was named the new coach of Algeria on Saturday, replacing Vahid Halilhodzic who took them to the second round of the World Cup in Brazil last month. Gourcuff had long been the earmarked to take over after Brazil but was only formally confirmed after a meeting of the Algerian Football Federation leadership in Algiers on Saturday. The 59-year-old Frenchman will start the job on August 1 and has been given a contract until the end of the next World Cup in Russia, said a federation statement. It means he will also be in charge for the next two African Nations Cups in 2015 and 2017 as well. Gourcuff was last coach of Lorient, leaving the job in May at the end of the Ligue 1 season. He has also coached at Le Mans and Stade Rennes and had a one-year spell in Saudi Arabia. His first match in charge of Algeria will be away against Ethiopia in September at the start of the Nations Cup qualifiers. Halilhodzic, who turned down a new contract and has since taken over at Turkish club Trabzonspor, had a tempestuous relationship with the Algerian federation and had made it clear he would be leaving. He led led them into the second round where they went out in extra time to eventual winners Germany. http://english.ahram.org.eg/News/106647.aspx
