The Federation of Algerian Football (FAF) has terminated the contract of head coach Vladimir Petkovic, and the name now attracting serious attention as a potential replacement is one Nigerian football fans will recognise immediately — Jose Peseiro, the Portuguese manager who spent two years in charge of the Super Eagles.
Petkovic’s exit was not entirely a surprise, though it still raised eyebrows given that the Serbian had signed a fresh two-year deal following the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations. What sealed his fate was a pair of early tournament exits that Algeria’s football establishment found impossible to overlook. The Desert Foxes were knocked out of AFCON 2025 at the quarter-final stage — by Nigeria’s Super Eagles, of all opponents — and then fell to Switzerland in the Round of 32 at the 2026 FIFA World Cup. Two tournaments, two premature exits, and now a coaching vacancy at one of Africa’s most historically demanding football federations.
According to French journalist Romain Molina, the FAF moved quickly to draw up a three-man shortlist. Alongside Peseiro, the federation is reportedly weighing up Rafa Benitez, the former Liverpool and Real Madrid manager, and Roberto Martinez, who previously led both Belgium and Portugal at international level. All three carry significant pedigree. What separates Peseiro from the other two, however, is straightforward: he is the only candidate on that list who has actually managed a national team on African soil.
Peseiro’s two years with Nigeria gave him direct exposure to the rhythms and pressures of African football — the AFCON qualifying grind, the logistical challenges, the weight of expectation that comes with managing a football-mad nation. Benitez and Martinez have managed at the very top of European club and international football, but neither has worked a day on this continent. That distinction matters, and it appears the FAF recognises it. African football has its own calendar, its own political dynamics and its own standards of pressure. Experience navigating all of that is not something you acquire by reputation alone.
There is an additional layer of context worth understanding here. Eric Chelle, Nigeria’s current head coach, had been linked to the Algeria vacancy in recent weeks — a rumour that caused some anxiety within Nigerian football circles. Those reports, however, appear to have lost momentum. The National Sports Commission Director-General, Bukola Olopade, confirmed that a verbal agreement on Chelle’s contract renewal is already in place, with formal documentation the remaining step. Olopade expressed confidence that Chelle would not be distracted by speculation. Whether that confidence is entirely warranted remains to be seen, but for now the NFF appears to have acted quickly enough to keep their man.
For Peseiro, a move to Algeria would represent a return to the African stage and a chance to manage a squad with genuine continental ambitions. The Desert Foxes have historically been one of Africa’s stronger sides, and the FAF will be expecting a coach who can restore both results and credibility. Whether the shortlist of three narrows to one — and whether Peseiro emerges as the chosen candidate — is a decision that now rests with the federation. What is already clear is that his African experience has placed him firmly in contention, and that is no small thing when the other names on the list have never worked a single match on this continent.