Official | Jorge Sampaoli appointed as Rennes head coach | OneFootball

Jorge Sampaoli has officially replaced Julien Stéphan as Rennes head coach, the Brittany Ligue 1 club announced this Monday. The 64-year-old Argentine coach is making an unexpected return to the French top tier after overseeing Marseille’s resurgence from 2021 to 2022. Sampaoli was a free agent following his dismissal as Flamingo manager in September 2023. The former Chile and Argentine manager has put pen to paper over an 18-month contract with Rennes, tying him to the Brittany outfit until 2026. Sampaoli is the first foreign Rennes coach in 18 years.

Sampaoli’s arrival is the final step of a whole range of changes in personnel within Stade Rennais. In the last months, Rennes Sporting director Florian Mauce left his position to join INEOS-owned OGC Nice and club president Olivier Cloarec has been dismissed by the club’s shareholder – the Pinault family. Frederic Massara and former Lens CEO Arnaud Pouille respectively replaced Maurice and Cloarec.

After a disappointing start to the Ligue 1 season, Stéphan’s Rennes hit rock bottom with a 4-0 away defeat at promoted side Auxerre. The son of France deputy head coach Guy Stéphan has been relieved of his duties on Thursday. On Sunday, with the club’s reserves head coach Sébastien Tambouret in the dugout and Sampaoli watching from the Roazhon Park stands, Rennes conceded a sixth defeat in 11 Ligue 1 games against Toulouse. Sampaoli will make his debut with Rennes against Lille after the international break.

GFFN | Bastien Cheval