Loncarevic returns to Libya
By Amr Shaheen
BBC Sport, North Africa
Loncarevic has returned to Libya nine months after being sacked
Croatia’s Ilija Loncarevic has signed a one-year contract to take charge of Libya just nine months after being sacked from the post.
The 60-year-old was surprisingly dismissed last July, shortly after guiding the Libyans to a 1-0 victory in Sudan in a Group Three 2006 World Cup and Cup of Nations qualifier.
Yet following a meeting in Tripoli with Mohamed Gaddafi, head of the interim committee that is currently managing the affairs of the Libyan Football Federation (LFF), Loncarevic has returned to the vacant post.
Libya coach resigns
The former coach of Croatia champions Dinamo Zagreb succeeds Mohamed El Khemisy, who resigned after a 4-1 defeat to North African rivals Egypt last month in a World Cup qualifier.
During his first term in charge, the Croatian coach was credited for his role in bringing young talents such as Walid Osman, Younes El-Shebani and Nader Tarhouni into the national squad.
Loncarevic’s biggest success in management came when he won the Croatian championship with Dinamo Zagreb in 1999 and he also led Inker Zapresic to the Croatian Cup in 1992.
Libya currently lie fourth in Group Three, behind table-toppers Ivory Coast, Cameroon and Egypt but ahead of Benin and Sudan.
Locarevic’s first task will be to lead the side in their next encounter against the Ivorians on 3 June in Tripoli.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/africa/4454123.stm
