‘I’m convinced that we’ll find a solution’  – Jean-Michel Aulas dismisses tense relationship between FFF and Hervé Renard  | OneFootball

The vice president of the French Football Federation, Jean-Michel Aulas has responded to Hervé Renard’s announcement that he will be leaving his role as manager of the women’s team at the end of his contract on the 31st of August.

Renard expressed in an interview with Le Figaro that he had no intention of continuing past the Summer Olympics, and hinted that tension with the federation was to blame for his desire to leave the national team set-up.

In particular, Renard referenced the episode in January where the Ivory Coast approached him to become their interim manager during the then-ongoing AFCON after Jean-Louis Gasset quit the national team set-up mid-tournament. After this, Renard believed that “The snipers were aimed at me.”

The FFF reportedly rejected this proposal outright in a meeting between Renard, Aulas, and the president of the federation, Philippe Diallo. And it appears to be the key turning point in the relationship between Renard and the federation.

Aulas rejects behind-the-scenes tension with Renard

However, Aulas in an interview with L’Équipe rejects this timeline of events and points out that they were happy to release the manager, but their demand for financial compensation was not met. “We were talking about a week maximum at a time when there were no matches and no preparation [for the women’s team]. If that hadn’t been the case, we would have handled the problem differently.”

Instead, Aulas paints a settled picture of Renard’s planned departure, “When we convinced him to join us, it was made clear that it was until the Olympic Games. We obviously had the idea that we could extend it further, but he never committed to that and we knew that it was already an incredible opportunity for women’s football to have him for that long.”

Aulas continues, “What he’s brought in terms of credibility and dynamics for women’s football is essential. I’m convinced that we will find a solution which will ensure that we are still credible when we were not at all before him. We knew there was only a tiny chance that he would extend.”

‘You need a profile very close to that of Hervé Renard’

On the topic of who might replace Renard, Aulas remained hopeful that he could still convince the manager to remain in the role past the Olympics. “There is no emergency. And with Hervé, everything is not decided at the moment, even if [leaving] is the trajectory. Maybe we’ll find the right words between now and then for Hervé to stay. We are not going to rush when there is no danger in the house.”

However, Aulas admits that the federation will discuss their next steps in a meeting on Friday. “I will present what I want to do to redefine the profile [of the next manager] and start the research. I have my plan… You need a profile very close to that of Hervé Renard. You need someone who has previous results.”

Whether that could be the two early favourites for the role, Sonia Bompastor (the manager of Olympique Lyonnais Féminin) or Sandrine Soubeyrand (manager for Paris FC Féminines), Aulas was reserved about their chances. “I understand the first risks leaving Lyon for Chelsea. And the second, I understand that its president does not want this. We talked about the future of [Soubeyrand]. He has big ambitions for her.”

GFFN | Nick Hartland