Mehmed Baždarević

Mehmed Baždarević
Born	(1960-09-28) September 28, 1960 Višegrad, FPR Yugoslavia
Other names	Meša (Yugoslavia), Mécha (France)
Occupation(s)	Football coach, former professional footballer
Years active	1978–1998 (player), 1998–2021 (coach)
Known for	Bosnian football coach and former player, captain of Bosnia and Herzegovina national team, Ligue 2 Manager of the Year 2004

Mehmed Baždarević (born on 28 September 1960) is a Bosnian football coach and former professional player, most recently at the helm of the Ligue 2 side Guingamp.

During his playing career, Baždarević featured for Bosnian club Željezničar and French outfit Sochaux, among others. Known as Meša in the former Yugoslavia and Mécha in France, he is widely recognized as one of Bosnia and Herzegovina’s premier footballers.

On the international stage, Baždarević earned caps representing Yugoslavia, including participation at UEFA Euro 1984. Following the dissolution of Yugoslavia, he represented Bosnia and Herzegovina, becoming their inaugural captain. He concluded his playing days in 1998 before moving into coaching.

Željezničar

Originating from Višegrad, within the former FPR Yugoslavia (present-day Bosnia and Herzegovina), Baždarević launched his professional journey with Željezničar in 1978. He was instrumental in the club’s advance to the semifinals of the 1985 UEFA Cup under head coach Ivica Osim. In the 1980–81 season, Baždarević netted two goals in the Yugoslav Cup final, although Željezničar fell 2–3 to Velež Mostar at Belgrade’s Red Star Stadium before an audience of 40,000. Over his tenure, he amassed more than 300 appearances for Željezničar.

Sochaux

In 1987, Baždarević moved to France to join Sochaux, transferring alongside fellow Bosnian Faruk Hadžibegić. He remained with Sochaux until 1996, appearing in excess of 350 matches across all competitions.

Later career and retirement

Following his stint at Sochaux, Baždarević spent the 1996–97 season with Nîmes and then played for Swiss side Étoile Carouge during 1997–98 before retiring from professional football in 1998. Throughout his playing years, he attracted interest from prominent clubs such as Barcelona, Arsenal, and Borussia Dortmund.

International career

Baždarević represented both Yugoslavia and Bosnia and Herzegovina at international level. He captained Yugoslavia’s under-20 squad at the 1979 FIFA World Youth Championship and went on to earn 54 caps with four goals for the senior Yugoslav team after debuting against France in 1983. He featured in every match at UEFA Euro 1984.

Following Bosnia and Herzegovina’s independence in 1992, Baždarević joined their national team; however, official appearances only commenced after FIFA recognition in 1995. He earned two caps during the qualifiers for the 1996 World Cup facing Greece and Croatia.

Early career

Between 1 July 1998 and 30 June 2003, Baždarević worked as assistant coach at Sochaux under managers Jean Fernandez and Guy Lacombe, subsequently taking charge of the club’s reserve squads.

Istres

Baždarević embarked on his managerial career at Istres, where he successfully led the team to its first-ever promotion to the French Ligue 1 in 2004. This accomplishment earned him the distinction of Ligue 2 Manager of the Year. It was during this time that he initiated a lasting professional partnership with assistant coach Stéphane Gilli.

Étoile

On 16 July 2005, Baždarević took over as head coach of Tunisian side Étoile du Sahel, steering them to the final of the 2005 CAF Champions League. However, following a significant league loss that cost the club the Tunisian league title, he was relieved of his duties on 12 April 2006.

Al-Wakrah

In 2006, Baždarević assumed managerial responsibilities at Al-Wakrah, competing in the Qatar Stars League.

Grenoble

In December 2007, upon recommendation from mentor Ivica Osim, Baždarević accepted the managerial position at French club Grenoble. He turned down offers from Ligue 1 teams Le Mans and Nice to join Grenoble. Under his guidance, Grenoble achieved promotion to Ligue 1 for the first time in their history by the conclusion of the 2007–08 Ligue 2 season. Additionally, they advanced to the semi-finals of the French Cup during the 2008–09 season. Baždarević departed from Grenoble in September 2010 due to financial difficulties faced by the club.

Sochaux

On 10 June 2011, Baždarević was appointed as manager of Sochaux, a club where he had previously played. His tenure lasted eight months before being dismissed on 6 March 2012 due to unsatisfactory results.

After leaving Sochaux, several clubs from Serbia and Belgium expressed interest in acquiring his services.

Bosnia and Herzegovina

Baždarević was named head coach of the Bosnia and Herzegovina national team on 13 December 2014, chosen over other contenders such as Vahid Halilhodžić, Igor Štimac, and Felix Magath. He succeeded Safet Sušić, who was dismissed following poor performances in UEFA Euro 2016 qualifiers. Under Baždarević’s leadership, Bosnia reached the Euro 2016 play-offs but were defeated by the Republic of Ireland with a 3–1 aggregate score. The former national coach Miroslav Blažević publicly criticized Baždarević for this outcome.

On 9 November 2015, his contract was extended by the Bosnian Football Association through the duration of the 2018 FIFA World Cup qualifying campaign. Baždarević earned his first managerial trophy by guiding Bosnia to a 2–1 win against Japan in the final of the 2016 Kirin Cup.

Following an unsuccessful bid to qualify for the 2018 FIFA World Cup, Baždarević’s contract expired, concluding his three-year tenure as head coach.

Paris FC

Baždarević took charge of Ligue 2 club Paris FC on a two-year deal starting from 15 June 2018. In his inaugural season, Paris FC secured a fourth-place finish. Nonetheless, he was dismissed on 30 December 2019 after a series of poor performances during the subsequent season.

Guingamp

On 30 August 2020, Baždarević was appointed manager of Guingamp with a contract extending until 2022. He chose to terminate his contract early on 1 February 2021 due to disappointing results.

Personal life

Marina Baždarević, Baždarević’s wife, hails from Belgrade, Serbia. Their relationship began after meeting twice during flights prior to starting their partnership. Their daughter, Téa Baždarević, works as a journalist based in France.

International goals

The scorelines and outcomes display Yugoslavia's goals first; the score column reflects the match score immediately after each goal by Baždarević.

Comprehensive list of Mehmed Baždarević's international goals

No.	Date	Venue	Opponent	Score after goal	Final result	Competition
1	14 December 1983	Cardiff, Wales	Template:Fb	1–1	1–1	UEFA Euro 1984 qualifying
2	20 October 1984	Leipzig, East Germany	Template:Fb	1–1	3–2	1986 FIFA World Cup qualification
3	14 September 1988	Oviedo, Spain	Template:Fb	1–1	2–1	Friendly
4	14 November 1990	Copenhagen, Denmark	Template:Fb	1–0	2–0	UEFA Euro 1992 qualifying

Managerial statistics

Summary of managerial performance by club and period

Team	Nationality	Start date	End date	Record overview
				Matches	Wins	Draws	Losses	Winning %
Istres		1 July 2003	9 January 2005
Étoile du Sahel		16 July 2005	12 April 2006
Al-Wakrah		1 July 2006	30 June 2007
Grenoble Foot 38		1 July 2007	5 September 2010 Template:WDL
FC Sochaux-Montbéliard		10 June 2011	6 March 2012 Template:WDL
Al-Wakrah SC		23 May 2012	3 June 2013 Template:WDL
Bosnia and Herzegovina national football team		13 December 2014	max=10 October 2017 Template:WDL
Paris FC		15 June 2018	30 December 2019 Template:WDL
En Avant Guingamp		30 August 2020	1 February 2021 Template:WDL
Overall total Template:WDLtot				—

Player

Sochaux

• Ligue 2 title: (1987–88)

Yugoslavia

• Bronze medal at the Summer Olympic Games: 1984 Summer Olympics

Manager

Bosnia and Herzegovina

• Winner of the Kirin Cup: 2016

Individual awards

• Recipient of Ligue 2 Manager of the Year: 2004

In popular culture

• Baždarević is remembered for a significant episode in which he spat at Turkish referee Yusuf Namoğlu during a 1990 FIFA World Cup qualification fixture against Norway, leading to a suspension from international matches lasting one year and causing him to miss the 1990 FIFA World Cup.
• He was also absent from UEFA Euro 1992 as Yugoslavia faced a ban due to UN sanctions amid the conflict in the Balkans; Denmark took Yugoslavia’s place and ultimately won the championship. Baždarević had scored against Denmark in the qualifying rounds.
• During the early ’90s, Baždarević became a recognizable figure within Yugoslav media, notably appearing in references on the sketch comedy program Top lista nadrealista, which alluded to the spitting incident.