World Football: Guus Hiddink Becomes Anzhi Makhachkala Manager
Anzhi Makhachkala may be poised to becoming the next big destination for every footballer of note, if the record salary they offered Samuel Eto'o last summer is anything to go by.
Eto'o left Inter Milan for the Dagestan-based Russian club on a salary of £167,825 per week.
Now the club has added to its ambition by signing Guus Hiddink, the Dutch manager, whose previous management experience include the Netherlands national team, Russian national team, Turkish national team and Chelsea, among others.
Hiddink's contract is short-term and will expire at the end of the 2012-13 season. On the contract and why he accepted the Makhachkala deal, Hiddink had this to say, according to BBC Sport:
"At the end of last year, we had long discussions on Anzhi and that's why now I made a prompt decision.
The most significant thing for me is that the club is building plans on football development in the republic. It's as much important as the sports result of the first team and I'm going to pay special attention to this direction.
We spoke much with [owner] Suleyman Kerimov about this after which I realized what a huge project I was invited to.
"
Suleyman Kerimov is the billionaire owner of the club, who purchased the club on January 18, 2011.
Besides Eto'o, the club has since acquired notable players such as Brazilian Roberto Carlos, Russian Yuri Zhirkov, Cameroonian Benoit Angbwa, and Moroccan Mbark Boussoufa.
The club's players are based outside Moscow and fly about 1,250 miles to Makhachkala for home games.
