Sébastien Bichard has been appointed the assistant manager to Pascal Gastien at Clermont Foot with the intention being that he will become their next manager at the end of the season.
Clermont had been keen to replace Gastien in recent weeks but the manager who has been at the club for the past seven years was reluctant to step aside midway through the season, allowing for a strange situation to occur as his replacement has been brought in to work under him for the next few months.
How this will work in practice and whether Gastien will be undermined by having his successor already in place at the club will have to be seen. However, they have made it clear that they are looking forward to this new working relationship.
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Bichard excited for ‘collaboration’ with Gastien
Gastien stated in the press release, “ I am delighted with the arrival of Sébastien Bichard. His skills will be very useful to us in our objective of fighting relegation. We will work closely on a daily basis to launch a new dynamic for the end of the season.”
Bichard who has left his role at Red Star as an assistant under Habib Beye, likewise expressed, “I can’t wait and I am very motivated at the idea of starting this new collaboration with Pascal Gastien and the entire staff in order to do everything possible to keep the club in Ligue 1.”
Clermont will need a sudden and dramatic turnaround in form if they are to escape from the relegation zone. Les Lanciers find themselves at the bottom of the table with a disastrous record of three wins in their twenty-four league games.
