INTERVIEW – Former Bordeaux and PSG player, Alain Roche was the sporting director of the Girondins when Jean-Louis Gasset returned there in 2020. He remembers him as a “passionate” and a “humanist”.
The death of Jean-Louis Gasset on Friday at the age of 72 caused turmoil in French football. Alain Roche was able to see his popularity at the Girondins de Bordeaux in 2020. The former defender returned there as sporting director, with Gasset at his side as N.1 coach, after a French championship title as assistant to Laurent Blanc in 2009. He paid him a vibrant tribute.
LE FIGARO – What was your reaction when you learned of the death of Jean-Louis Gasset?
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ALAIN ROCHE – It’s dazzling, incredible, unpredictable. Especially since he was in great shape. That’s life…
How did you know him?
I met him often when he was Laurent Blanc’s deputy. (Bordeaux, French team, PSG). On the football fields too, when he was a coach and I was still a player. Occasionally, when I saw Laurent and he was there, we were able to talk a lot, but it’s true that the relationship was much stronger the year we spent together in Bordeaux.
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“Rest in peace Papi”, “an encyclopedia of football”… French football pays tribute to Jean-Louis Gasset, who died this Friday
Who was he as a man and a coach?
He was passionate about football and passionate about people. He was a humanist who needed to exchange a lot. A great trainer, a great coach, but above all a gentleman who gave his heart. You had to give it back to him, because if you didn’t give it back… But he’s a passionate person who is always looking for the solution, who always wants to help everyone, and above all who has real club values. That’s what I really appreciated. Everywhere he went, he left lasting memories.
Johnny Fidelin / Icon Sport
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When I returned to Bordeaux as sports director in 2020 (at the same time as Gasset)had left him an incredible image with Laurent Blanc (French champion in 2009). It was… like a god who had returned, he was so adored by the people. The message he conveyed was the values of the club. When you are in a club, you have to be inspired by the history, the values, and the elders too. He paid a lot of homage to the elders, he relied a lot on them, he knew the importance of the club’s history. Above all, you should not remove it, but rather soak it up. I don’t think there are many people who will say bad things about Jean-Louis. He’s a complete guy. If he had something to tell you, he would tell you. There was great honesty.
Even in Marseille, when he arrives (February 2024) as a firefighter on duty in a big club that is going badly…
Yes because every time Jean-Louis comes, it’s not a mission. He comes to make his contribution, because the club continues to live and we must above all not turn away from the club’s values. We’re all just passing through, he knows that. When we are there, we give everything for this club, for its history, for its public. He was also very steeped in supporterism, he knew the importance of supporters. He’s a guy who has values. Finally, who had values… And which are being lost anyway. That’s why it’s a great loss.
