Felix Sanchez has been appointed Bahrain manager, two months after being considered a leading candidate to succeed Vladimir Petkovic as Algeria boss.
The Bahrain Football Association confirmed the Spaniard’s appointment on Monday. He will begin work during the November international window and has been tasked with leading Bahrain at the 2027 Asian Cup.
Sanchez replaces Dragan Talajic, who was dismissed after Bahrain lost all three of their matches at the Gulf Cup.
The move has particular significance in Algeria, where Sanchez was one of the final three candidates shortlisted by the Federation Algerienne de Football (FAF) following Petkovic’s departure. Rafael Benitez and Tom Saintfiet were the other contenders.
At one stage, Sanchez’s profile was regarded as one of the most advanced in the discussions. Several sources reported that negotiations had progressed significantly and that a preliminary agreement may even have been reached.
The former Qatar manager’s potential appointment was nevertheless divisive. His supporters pointed to his experience in international football, his preference for possession-based football and his reputation as a coach who develops players. Others questioned whether he would be able to cope with the pressure associated with managing Algeria.
The prospect eventually lost momentum after several negative reports concerning his treatment of the squad, his communication and his relationship with the players. The FAF has never officially explained why the discussions failed.
Sanchez now returns to management with Bahrain, who are 97th in the FIFA rankings. That represents a significant contrast with Algeria, who have recently played at the World Cup and remain one of Africa’s leading football nations. For those who had doubts about Sanchez’s status, the appointment may reinforce their reservations.
Yet judging the Spaniard solely by Bahrain’s ranking would be overly simplistic. Sanchez is highly familiar with football in the Gulf and remains the manager who guided Qatar to the Asian title in 2019.
His subsequent spells with Ecuador and Al-Sadd were more mixed, but the Bahrain job places him back in an environment where his approach has already proved effective. The move therefore appears less like a straightforward step down than a return to a region he knows well.
Algeria, meanwhile, have taken a different direction by appointing Brahim Hemdani. The possibility of Sanchez taking charge of the Fennecs has now passed, while his new role in Bahrain may eventually offer a clearer perspective on whether the FAF missed an opportunity or simply decided against a gamble it no longer trusted.