Following reports this afternoon that Lorient manager Régis Le Bris is closing in on a move to Nice, Les Merlus appear to be wasting no time in finding a replacement – with Foot Mercato indicating that the Bretons have reached out to Julien Stéphan to take over as manager.
The 42-year-old is the former manager of Rennes and Strasbourg, and was dismissed by the Alsatians midway through last season while the club was lying in 19th place. Nevertheless, the previous campaign had seen Stéphan guide Strasbourg to an impressive sixth-place finish, narrowly missing out on a spot in European competition.
While he has publicly announced his interest in the now-vacant Monaco job, Stéphan’s next job could see him return to Brittany instead. Foot Mercato add that the coach is interested in the Lorient project, having been contacted this past week by the club’s upper management.
Lorient started off last season in impressive form under Le Bris, even finding themselves in second place to Paris Saint-Germain for several weeks during the autumn. However, the sales of Dango Ouattara to Bournemouth and Terem Moffi to Nice preceded a dip in form in the second half of the campaign. Now, the Bretons may also be set to lose out on their long-time coach, who rose through the ranks to take charge of the senior team last summer.
GFFN | Raphaël Jucobin
