The Japanese football association says it has reached an agreement with Vahid Halilhodzic to become the national team coach.

Masahiro Shimoda, the JFA’s technical committee chairman, says the association is expected to approve the deal at a meeting of its executive board on 12 March. Japanese media reported that the 62-year-old Bosnian will be paid an annual salary of $2.2m (£1.44m).

Japan’s previous coach, Javier Aguirre, was fired in February over concerns that allegations of his involvement in a match-fixing scandal would interfere with qualifying for the 2018 World Cup.

Halilhodzic guided Algeria into the knockout stages of the World Cup for the first time in Brazil last year. He resigned after the tournament, vowing never to forgive the press for their treatment of him.

The former Yugoslavia striker has been out of work since quitting the Turkish side Trabzonspor in November following a poor run.