Bahrain lifted the regional title with a 2-1 victory over Oman in Kuwait on January 4th, claiming the trophy for the second time to give their World Cup hopes a major injection of confidence.
"After winning the Gulf Cup, we received a huge boost, and we look forward to using this positive momentum to perform well in the World Cup qualifiers," Talajic told Reuters.
"I believe this generation will make history for Bahraini football in the World Cup."
The island nation of around 1.5 million people, positioned in a narrow strip of the Gulf between Saudi Arabia and Qatar, has never previously qualified for the World Cup.
They have twice gone close, however, missing out on Germany in 2006 to Trinidad and Tobago in an intercontinental playoff before suffering the same fate against New Zealand four years later.
But with FIFA increasing the World Cup from 32 to 48 teams for the next edition, eight Asian nations will qualify directly for 2026 and that, plus the hiring of Talajic, has given the Bahrainis belief.
The 59-year-old has spent much of his coaching career in the Gulf, serving as Bahrain's technical director before replacing Juan Antonio Pizzi at the helm following the team's exit from the Asian Cup in February.
Talajic's impact was instant, guiding his side through the remaining matches of the second phase of Asian qualifying and into the third round, where Bahrain kicked off their campaign in September with a last-gasp 1-0 win over Australia.
By November, draws with Indonesia, Saudi Arabia and Australia had moved Bahrain onto six points in Group C, well adrift of leaders Japan but only a point behind the second-placed Socceroos going into the preliminaries' four-month hiatus.
Qualifying resumes for Bahrain on March 20 against Japan with the Gulf Cup, a title contested by Middle Eastern heavyweights such as Saudi Arabia, Iraq and Qatar, stashed away in the trophy cabinet of the Bahrain Football Association.
Bahrain achieved the win with victories over Saudi Arabia and Iraq in the group phase before a semi-final success against hosts Kuwait and the 2-1 victory over Oman in the decider, courtesy of an 80th-minute Mohammed Al-Musalami own goal.
"Maintaining our focus helps us perform at our best," said Talajic, whose team also profited from a late winner in their semi-final.
"We prepare ourselves for every scenario we encounter on the field, and we know the result can change at any moment.
"We came to Kuwait with high hopes and ambitions, knowing that we would be facing teams considered favourites to win the title.
"The main goal is the World Cup qualifiers. We recognise the difficulty of the journey."
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