Moroccan football club Raja CA confirmed the appointment of German coach Josef Zinnbauer as the first team’s new head coach on Thursday.
“I’m happy I can be here. I know the club, I know the city, I know the supporters in this club,” the 53 year-old coach said during the press conference where he was presented, stressing that the team’s target is to win titles.
Zinnbauer played as a midfielder from 1988 to 2005 at several German clubs before taking up a managerial career.
He has coached in Europe in the reserve teams of Hamburger SV and Karlsruhe, as well as St. Gallen in Switzerland. Most recently, he managed Russian side Lokomotiv Moscow in 2022.
He also has some experience coaching in Africa, having coached South Africa’s Orlando Pirates from 2019 to 2021.
The announcement comes following the parting of ways between Raja and their previous coach Mondher Kebaier, after the latter did not show up to work from May 29 to June 5.
“[This} is a violation of the contractual obligations that tie the two parties and Mondher Kebaier’s professional obligations towards the club,” Raja said in a statement published on Wednesday, stressing that they unilaterally terminated the contract between the two parties.