René Girard (footballer)

René Girard (born 4 April 1954) is a French football manager and former player. He is currently the manager of Ligue 2 side Paris FC.

René Girard
Personal information
Date of birth (1954-04-04) 4 April 1954
Place of birth Vauvert, France
Height 1.78 m (5 ft 10 in)
Playing position(s) Defensive midfielder
Club information
Current team
 Paris FC (manager)
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
1973–1980 Nîmes 202 (27)
1980–1988 Bordeaux 241 (17)
1988–1991 Nîmes 92 (5)
Total 535 (49)
National team
1981–1982 France 7 (1)
Teams managed
1991–1994 Nîmes
1996–1997 Pau FC
1998 Strasbourg
2002–2003 France U19
2003–2004 France U16
2004–2008 France U21
2009–2013 Montpellier
2013–2015 Lille
2016 Nantes
2018 Wydad AC
2020– Paris FC
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only

Playing career

Girard won seven caps, scoring one goal for France and was a member of the squad that finished fourth at the 1982 World Cup. At club level, while playing for Bordeaux, Girard won three Ligue 1 titles – in 1983–84, 1984–85 and 1986–87, as well as two Coupes de France, over Marseille in the 1986 and 1987 editions.

Coaching career

Girard managed Nîmes, Strasbourg, Pau FC and multiple France youth teams. He coached the France national under-21 football team from 2004–08.

On 3 June 2009, he became the new head coach of Montpellier HSC, replacing Rolland Courbis. In the 2011–12 season, Montpellier shocked the footballing world by winning its first Ligue 1 title, finishing the season with 82 points, three more than runner-up Paris Saint-Germain. He said after his team won it. "I think our triumph is a real shot in the arm for French football.[1][2][3] "It just goes to show that everyone can beat everyone and that money isn't the be-all and end-all. We're a club of mates, a club that brings young players through and gives them a chance. "At the end of the day, it's worked out well for us. We played some great football, with a well-balanced team and I'm overwhelmed."[4][5][6]

He signed for Lille in July 2013, replacing Rudi Garcia who left for Roma.[7][8][9]

On 30 September 2018, he was appointed as the head coach of Moroccan club Wydad AC.[10]

Honours

Player

Bordeaux

Manager

Montpellier

References
  1. "Montpellier HSC crowned Champions of France". Frenchfootballweekly.com.
  2. "Ireland are the Montpellier of international football – and other club v country statistics". Thejournal.ie.
  3. "Louis Nicollin: Montpellier here to stay". Sportsmole.co.uk.
  4. "Rene Girard: 'We deserved it'". Sportsmole.co.uk.
  5. "Ligue 1: Magnificent Montpellier make history". Thejournal.ie.
  6. "Montpellier Lift Le Championnat With Home Crowd". Frenchfootballweekly.com. 22 May 2012.
  7. "Lille hires Rene Girard as coach, replacing Garcia". Boston Herald. 15 June 2013.
  8. "Ligue 1: Lille confirm appointment of Rene Girard as their new coach – TEAMtalk | Football | World | Club News". TEAMtalk. Archived from the original on 24 June 2013.
  9. "Lille appoint Rene Girard". Sports Mole. 15 June 2013.
  10. Maroc : René Girard nouvel entraîneur du WAC, africandailyvoice.com, 1 October 2018
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