[1] Berkhissa was born on the island of Kerkennah off the coast of Tunisia on 9 May 1972 to a Tunisian father and Algerian mother.

Unable to settle, he later decided to move back to France, only to return permanently to Tunisia with his family when he was 16.

Having played football while living in France he joined his local team in the capital, Espérance.

It was a dream debut on 31 January 1991 in the Tunis derby against local rivals Club Africain, with the game ending in a draw.

[2] On 4 January 1997, in a friendly match between Espérance and French side Lyon at Stade Chedli Zouiten, Berkhissa had a heart attack on the field in the last minutes of the game and died.