Edin Terzic: The Story of A Dortmund Fan and Head Coach
Edin Terzic is a German-Croatian professional football manager and is the head coach of German Bundesliga giants Borussia Dortmund. Although he was a decent amateur footballer who played in the German lower leagues, he is more renowned in the footballing world as a football manager.
Terzic played as a forward in the lower leagues of German football during his playing career. After the end of his playing career, he worked in various roles in football. Join us as we explore the journey of Edin Terzic from his playing career to his managerial career.
The Early Life of Edin Terzic
Edin Terzic was born on 30 October 1982 in Menden, West Germany, to a working-class immigrant family from Yugoslavia. Edin’s family migrated to the Rhineland amidst war in their native Yugoslavia.
Terzic even grew up sharing his bedroom with family members who fled the war in Yugoslavia. That is for those family members fortunate enough to escape the war.
Edin Terzic played as a forward during his youth playing days. However, his playing career as a semi-professional in the regional leagues was to help pay for his sports science studies at Ruhr University in Bochum.
The Playing Career of Edin Terzic
Edin Terzic began his football career as a youngster in one of Germany’s many amateur leagues and never progressed into professional football. Terzic began his playing career with FC Iserlohn 46/49 in 2003. He stayed with the club for a single season scoring only one goal in thirty appearances for club.
Terzic moved to Westfalia Herne and played for two seasons managing 3 goals in thirty appearances. Edin Terzic tasted victory with SC Westfalia Herne, where he won the Westphalia Cup in 2006. He scored twice in the final to help his side secure a 6–4 win over Delbrucker SC.
The forward then spent a single year each at SG Wattenscheid 09 and Westfalia Herne scoring a combined 10 goals in 67 appearances for both clubs.
His next adventure saw him play for BV Cloppenburg from 2008 to 2010, he scored 7 goals in 31 appearances. Edin Terzic’s final adventure in the amateur leagues with Borussia Dröschede brought his best returns in terms of goals per minute. He spent 3 years at the club scoring 7 goals in 26 appearances.
Edin Terzic’s Journey to Management
Terzic’s journey into football management began in 2010 while studying for his UEFA A coaching license. Edin had the opportunity to meet with Dortmund’s then-Chief Scout, Sven Mislintat.
After some months, Edin Terzic became a member of Borussia Dortmund’s scouting department and youth academy setup. His job description then included opposition analysis and being an assistant coach for the club’s many youth teams.
Edin Terzic’s First Coaching Stint with Borussia Dortmund
Terzic’s first stint with Borussia Dortmund started in 2010. Edin Terzic worked as a scout and assistant coach for Borussia Dortmund U19 from 2010 to 2011. He also worked with the Borussia Dortmund II as the assistant coach briefly in 2011, before joining the U17 youth side in the same capacity from 2011 to 2013.
Edin Terzic was appointed the Dortmund U16 head coach in 2013, However, a few week later he left the club to join Slaven Bilic at Besiktas. As part of his duties with the youth academy of Borussia Dortmund, He frequently reported to the then first-team manager Jurgen Klopp.
Working With Slaven Bilic from 2013 – 2017
Edin Terzic worked with Slaven Bilic as an assistant coach during the Croatian manager’s time at Besiktas in Turkey and West Ham United in England. His association with Slaven Bilic started in 2012 after Terzic prepared a pre-game opponent analysis for Croatia’s match against Ireland at Euro 2012.
Slaven Bilic was so impressed with Terzic’s understanding of the game and analysis of his opponent. He asked Edin Terzic to join him as an assistant coach at Lokomotiv Moscow. However, the deal could not be completed and Bilic failed to get his man.
After Bilic took over the reins at Besiktas, he asked Edin Terzic again to join him and the pair worked together for two years from 2013 to 2015 at the Turkish club. Edin’s collaboration with Bilic continued after they joined West United in 2015 before leaving the London club in 2017.
After leaving West Ham in 2017, Terzic went to study for his UEFA A Licence. He graduated from the 18-month-long course of The Football Association in England. Edin Terzic graduated alongside former Chelsea manager Graham Potter as well as Manchester United legends Nicky Butt and Nemanja Vidic.
Edin Terzic’s Return to Borussia Dortmund
Edin Terzic returned to Borussia Dortmund in 2018 following the appointment of Lucien Favre as an assistant coach of the first team. Terzic’s first taste of first-team management came when he took charge of Borussia Dortmund’s first team.
He took charge of the match along with Manfred Stefes for the 2018–19 Bundesliga encounter against TSG 1899 Hoffenheim. The duo took charge of the match as head coach Lucien Favre was unavailable due to illness.
Edin Terzic became the interim manager of Borussia Dortmund after Favre was sacked in December 2020. He was given the job until the end of the 2020–21 Bundesliga season. Terzic led Dortmund to victory in the 2020–21 DFB-Pokal final with a 4–1 victory over RB Leipzig.
After Dortmund appointed Marco Rose as their new permanent manager, Terzic was appointed technical director at the start of the 2021-22 Bundesliga season. However, by the end of the season, Edin Terzic was appointed the new permanent manager after Marco Rose left by mutual consent.
Edin Terzic’s first full season in charge of Borussia Dortmund almost resulted in a Bundesliga title. However, Dortmund lost the title on goal difference to arch-rivals FC Bayern Munich on the final day of the season after playing out a 2–2 home draw with Mainz 05.
Edin Terzic Tactics
Edin Terzic has proven to have a good awareness of the nuances of the game. His gameplay is characterized by fluid attacking moves, defensive solidity, and smart transitions. Terzic is also very versatile and flexible with his tactical formations, placing emphasis on player positioning and pressing.
Terzic primarily employs a 4-3-3 formation with his Borussia Dortmund side. However, when in possession or an attacking phase the team switches to a 3-2-5 formation. This formation has 3 players manning the defence, 2 in the middle of the pitch and 5 players across the attacking lines.
Edin likes his teams to use the early through-ball in behind the opposition’s backline with the forward players making dangerous runs behind the defence. This forces the opposition to fall back to nullify the threat which creates space for the Dortmund midfielders to dominate.
Terzic’s Dortmund are dangerous in the final third. His team create chances by attacking space between the opposition centre-backs and fullbacks. Furthermore, they like to attack the wide areas with underlaps from the attacking midfielders or sometimes the defenders.
Edin Terzic has enjoyed a lot of success from his management style. He has been able to get the best out of the likes of Erling Haaland, Jadon Sancho and club legend Marco Reus. Terzic’s management style values team unity and harmony in the dressing room. This harmony was one of the main reasons he has been able to transform Dortmund.
Influences on Edin Terzic’s Career
Terzic has worked under German tactician Jurgen Klopp, he got to see how Klopp’s side – spearheaded by Mario Götze, Mats Hummels and Robert Lewandowski – took Germany and Europe by storm. He alos worked with Slaven Bilic first in Turkey and the in England.
During his time in England as an assistant manager to Bilic, he went against elite class managers in the mould of Pep Guardiola, Jose Mourinho and Carlo Ancelotti.
Personal Life
Edin Terzic is a lifelong Borussia Dortmund fan, as he was born around 40km from the Signal Iduna Park. He is also a graduate of Sports Science from Ruhr University Bochum.
The Borussia Dortmund manager suffered a personal tragedy when he lost his dad on October 9, 2022. His older brother Alen Terzic also works as a scout for Borussia Dortmund. Alen Terzic also served as caretaker manager of Borussia Dortmund II during the 2019–20 Regionalliga West season.
Edin Terzic met his wife Kora Wolm when he was studying for his UEFA A License and they got married in 2013 in a castle in Nordkrichen, Germany.
Conclusion
Edin Terzic’s time at Dortmund has seen the club rise from near obscurity to challenging for the Bundesliga title. As a lifelong fan, taking Dortmund back to the summit is a personal matter for the talented manager.
With the club challenging for the UEFA Champions League title in the semi-final stage, it won’t be long before the victory bells ring at the Signal Iduna Park. Edin Terzic is still relatively young in his managerial career and we at Footballers’ Biographies are looking forward to his future exploits.
