Ligue 1: Jocelyn Gourvennec appointed coach of Lille

Le Losc, reigning French champion, announced on Monday the appointment as head coach of Jocelyn Gourvennec, 49, former coach of Bordeaux and Guingamp, who succeeds Christophe Galtier who left for OGC Nice.

LOSC officially announces the appointment of Jocelyn Gourvennec as head coach.

Read the press release

- LOSC (@losclive) July 5, 2021

"Le Losc is delighted with the arrival of Jocelyn Gourvennec. Already at work, the new Lille coach will join his players in the Netherlands tonight for a pre-season internship before being presented to the media on Wednesday at the Luchin estate. ”, Said the northern club in a statement.

A surprise nomination

This appointment is a surprise, the name of the former midfielder, who notably passed through Nantes, Marseille and Rennes, was not mentioned among the technicians followed by the Mastiffs (Thiago Motta, Laurent Blanc, Patrick Vieira, Lucien Favre).

Until the morning, it was the Italian Claudio Ranieri who seemed to hold the rope.

After two days devoted to PCR and physical tests Thursday and Friday, Lille had resumed training with the ball on Monday, without an official coach.

He hasn't coached for two seasons

Long awaited, the departure for Nice of Christophe Galtier, at the head of the team during the coronation of last May, did not materialize until June 28.

Since then, President Olivier Létang, who had waited for this issue to be settled to probe the market, was looking for a replacement.

His choice fell on Gourvennec, who has not coached for two seasons and held the position of consultant for Canal +, in particular in the Canal Football Club.

His last experience on a bench ended in a descent in Ligue 2 during the 2018/19 season with Guingamp, a club with which he had climbed to Ligue 1 in 2013 and the Coupe de France the following year, his only career title.