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Maurizio Jacobacci has been a coach at CS Sfaxien in Tunisia since mid-December.
Michael WegmanDeputy Head of Football
Maurizio Jacobacci lost 1-0 to leader Etoile du Sahel on his debut as coach of CS Sfaxien in Tunisia just before Christmas. Scorer? The former FCZ ball magician Yassine Chikhaoui, now 36. “Yassine is technically still outstanding,” says Jacobacci.
Jacobacci scored four points from games two and three. It’s what he needs. He has a performance-related contract, he says. This probably means that qualifying for the final round is mandatory if you want to work for a longer period of time.
Clear the cloakrooms after each training session
He has to deliver immediately. This will be anything but easy. Due to a championship interruption, almost every third day is now played in Tunisia. Jacobacci hardly has time to study tactical moves. He is also hoping for two or three experienced reinforcements.
He still lives in the hotel, so far he hasn’t had the time to look for an apartment. He has also hardly seen anything of the port city of Sfax in his first month. «I concentrate fully on my job. I had to get to know my players, study opponents and get used to the conditions.” For example, Sfaxien does not have its own stadium, players and staff have to clear the dressing rooms after each training session. Nobody has their own locker, says the man from Bern, “but at least we have a material room where we can store balls, cones and such…”
And will he make it into the top 4 and the final round? Jacobacci: «I firmly believe in it, but we have a hard road ahead of us. Inshallah say the people here.” That means something like: “God willing …”
He “celebrated” Christmas and his 60th birthday alone
He takes it cooler than at the beginning of his coaching career. After all, he has already experienced a lot as a coach. He was at Sion, Wil, Schaffhausen, Lugano, GC, Kriens, at Wacker Innsbruck and most recently at Grenoble, where he was released in December 2021 despite good classification and results. “If I’ve learned anything over the years, it’s that layoffs are simply part of the job.”
And yet, after consulting his life partner, he accepts the offer. Knowing that he spent Christmas, New Year’s and also his 60th birthday on January 11th without her, the children and his brother and wife. “Football is my life,” he says, “that was it as a player and now as a coach. As long as I feel fit and happy, I will be a coach…”