PARIS – Former France captain Didier Deschamps will take over as coach of Olympique Marseille next season, the Ligue 1 title contenders said yesterday.
Captain of the 1998 World Cup and Euro 2000 winning France teams, Deschamps will replace Belgian Eric Gerets, who previously announced he was stepping down at the end of the season.
‘The choice of Didier Deschamps, whose playing and coaching career speaks for itself, was a natural one,’ OM said on their website (www.om.net).
‘A meeting between the club’s president and its major shareholder last Friday confirmed this choice. After Eric Gerets, Marseille could only set their sights on a top coach.’
The club said Deschamps had signed a two-year contract and stated that its priority was winning the Ligue 1 title.
‘I accepted the proposal to come and become coach of Olympique Marseille next season,’ the 40-year-old told the club’s website.
The Bayonne-born Deschamps is the last captain to have lifted a trophy for Marseille, winning the 1993 Champions League before going on to enjoy success with Juventus in Italy and Chelsea in England.
He won three Serie A titles and the 1996 Champions League with Juve.
Famously derided as a ‘water carrier’ by Eric Cantona, Deschamps won 103 caps with France, scoring four goals.
– Nampa-AFP
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