To find the rare bird, what could be better than an advertisement on LinkedIn? To replace Andoni Zubizarreta, who left his post as sports director in mid-May, OM aims to recruit a “Head of football” with more extensive prerogatives to allow Marseille to “regain its rank of top European club”, according to President Jacques-Henri Eyraud.
In addition to overseeing “the training strategy”, this manager must display “obvious transactional qualities to carry out player acquisitions and sales” while mastering “perfectly the legal aspects specific to contracts,” wrote Eyraud.
“Decisive support” for coach André Villas-Boas, who decided Monday to stay at OM, this “Head of Football” must place him “in the best conditions for success […] by allowing him to fully concentrate on the field, ”he adds. A portrait-robot that seriously reminds Leonardo, the sports director … of PSG!
New faces in Lyon and Saint-Etienne
For clubs with economic models based essentially on the “trading” of players, such an architect remains the keystone in order to be able to trim down a plethora of staff as in Monaco or find nuggets with strong resale potential as in Lille.
Since the dismissal at Angers of Olivier Pickeu, specialist in record capital gains, a game of musical chairs is even underway: Sébastien Larcier has left Dijon for Angers, while the former head of OL recruiting Florian Maurice joined Rennes to be promoted to “sports director”.
Monaco also tried to poach John Williams (Amiens) but the right arm of President Bernard Joannin finally decided to stay in Picardy despite the descent into Ligue 2. Oleg Petrov, vice-president of the Monegasque club, therefore considered the return of an elder of the house: Luis Campos, the sports adviser of Gérard Lopez in Lille.
To support the already existing sports bosses in Lyon and Saint-Etienne, namely Juninho and Claude Puel, the two rival clubs have announced the arrivals of Bruno Cheyrou (PSG) and Jean-Luc Buisine (Rennes) to the recruitment department.
Cheyrou “will allow OL to benefit from its European and French networks … It has helped us a lot sometimes, particularly in the recruitment of Memphis Depay” in January 2017, says Jean-Michel Aulas.
With a Claude Puel, at the same time coach, general manager, and member of the Executive Board of ASSE, what place for Jean-Luc Buisine? The former Losc player will have a function similar to that which he knew in Rennes, Monaco and Lille … where he already crossed the road to Puel between 2003 and 2008. With success.