Paul Le Guen facts for kids
Le Guen managing Paris Saint-Germain in 2009
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| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Paul Joseph Marie Le Guen | ||
| Date of birth | 1 March 1964 | ||
| Place of birth | Pencran, Finistère, France | ||
| Height | 1.86 m (6 ft 1 in) | ||
| Position(s) | Midfielder | ||
| Youth career | |||
| 1971–1977 | GA Landerneau | ||
| 1977–1982 | US Pencran | ||
| 1982–1983 | AS Brest | ||
| 1983–1984 | Brest | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 1984–1989 | Brest | 120 | (4) |
| 1989–1991 | Nantes | 76 | (1) |
| 1991–1998 | Paris Saint-Germain | 248 | (16) |
| Total | 444 | (21) | |
| International career | |||
| 1993–1995 | France | 17 | (1) |
| 1998 | Brittany | 1 | (0) |
| Managerial career | |||
| 1998–2001 | Rennes | ||
| 2002–2005 | Lyon | ||
| 2006–2007 | Rangers | ||
| 2007–2009 | Paris Saint-Germain | ||
| 2009–2010 | Cameroon | ||
| 2011–2015 | Oman | ||
| 2017–2018 | Bursaspor | ||
| 2019–2022 | Le Havre | ||
| *Club domestic league appearances and goals | |||
Paul Le Guen, born on March 1, 1964, is a French football coach and former player. He used to manage the French club Le Havre.
As a player, Le Guen was a midfielder. He had a great time playing for Paris Saint-Germain F.C. from 1991 to 1998. He also played 17 games for the French national team. As a manager, his biggest success was winning the Ligue 1 title three times in a row with Lyon between 2002 and 2005.
Contents
Playing Career Highlights
Paul Le Guen was born in Pencran, France. During his time as a player, he played for Brest for five years. He also played for Nantes Atlantique for two years.
Success at Paris Saint-Germain
Le Guen then moved to Paris Saint-Germain F.C. (PSG). He played there for seven seasons, from 1991 to 1998. He played 478 games for PSG. During this time, he helped the team win many important titles. These included a league title, three French Cups, and two League Cups. He also won the UEFA Cup Winners' Cup in 1996. Le Guen even scored the winning goal in the 1995 French Cup Final against Strasbourg.
International Football Experience
Paul Le Guen played 17 times for the French national team. He was part of the team that unfortunately missed out on going to the 1994 FIFA World Cup. His playing career ended with a friendly match. This was when the Brittany team played against Cameroon on May 21, 1998. The game ended in a 1–1 draw.
Managerial Journey
Paul Le Guen had a very successful career as a football manager in France. He is best known for leading Lyon to win the Ligue 1 title three times in a row. He has also managed several other well-known clubs. These include Stade Rennais, Paris Saint-Germain, and Rangers. He also coached the national teams of Cameroon and Oman. Later, he managed Bursaspor and Le Havre. In July 2016, he was considered for the manager role of the Nigerian national team, but he did not agree to the contract terms.
Managing Rennes
From 1998 to 2001, Le Guen managed Rennes. He was known for finding and signing players who were not well-known at the time. For example, he signed Shabani Nonda and El Hadji Diouf. Under his guidance, these players became very talented footballers. Le Guen left Rennes in 2001 after a disagreement with the club's board. This led him to take a year off from football.
Leading Lyon to Glory
On May 21, 2002, Le Guen took over as manager of Lyon. This was right after they won their first league title. Le Guen's start at Lyon was a bit tough. He only won three of the first nine games. However, he quickly turned things around. He led Lyon to win three more league championships in a row. He also helped them reach the quarter-finals of the UEFA Champions League. Le Guen resigned from Lyon on May 9, 2005. This was the day after the club won their fourth straight Ligue 1 championship. After leaving Lyon, Le Guen took another year off from football management. During this break, he turned down offers from several big European clubs.
Time at Rangers
On March 11, 2006, it was announced that Le Guen would become the new manager of Rangers in Scotland. He signed a three-year contract. Le Guen quickly brought in several new players to the team. He was the first Catholic manager for Rangers, a club that has historically had a Protestant identity.
Le Guen's time at Rangers started poorly. His first ten league games were the worst start for a new manager in the "Old Firm" rivalry (Rangers vs. Celtic) in many years. On November 8, Rangers were knocked out of the Scottish League Cup by a lower-league team, St Johnstone. This was the first time Rangers had lost a cup game at home to a team from a lower division. This result caused protests from fans.
On January 1, 2007, Rangers announced that Le Guen had removed Barry Ferguson as the team captain. Ferguson was also dropped from the squad for an upcoming match. Just three days later, on January 4, 2007, Le Guen left Rangers by agreement with the club. This made him the shortest-serving manager in the club's history. He was the only manager to leave without finishing a full season.
Even though his domestic results were not good, Le Guen's record in European competitions with Rangers was excellent. The team remained unbeaten in the 2006–07 UEFA Cup and finished at the top of their group. However, it was the poor results in Scotland that led to his departure.
Return to Paris Saint-Germain
On January 15, 2007, it was announced that Le Guen would return to Paris Saint-Germain (PSG). He had been a captain for the club as a player. He became the first team coach. When Le Guen arrived, PSG was in 17th place in Ligue 1. He managed to guide them to safety, finishing 15th in his first season.
In the 2007–08 season, PSG's performance was inconsistent. The club was in the relegation zone with only four games left in the league. However, they managed to win the Coupe de la Ligue by beating Lens 2–1. This win guaranteed them a spot in the UEFA Cup for the next season. They also reached the final of the Coupe de France. On May 5, 2009, PSG announced that Le Guen would not be offered a new contract. He left the club at the end of the 2008–09 season.
Coaching Cameroon National Team
Paul Le Guen was named the manager of the Cameroon national football team on July 15, 2009. He signed a six-month contract. He quickly made a big impact. He led the team to qualify for the 2010 FIFA World Cup. Le Guen also made a big change by taking the captaincy from veteran defender Rigobert Song. He gave the captain's armband to Samuel Eto'o. Both players responded well to this change. Eto'o started scoring many goals, and Song earned his starting spot back. Cameroon qualified for the World Cup finals. However, Cameroon was the first team to be officially knocked out of the 2010 World Cup. Le Guen announced his resignation on June 24, 2010.
Managing Oman National Team
After the 2010–11 season, Le Guen said he had job offers from several French clubs. However, he turned them all down. He eventually accepted an offer from the Oman national football team on June 11, 2011. He led Oman to qualify for the 2015 AFC Asian Cup. Oman had not been in the 2011 tournament. In the 2015 tournament, Oman was eliminated in the group stage. They had one win and two losses. Le Guen was fired on November 19, 2015. This was after a poor start to their 2018 FIFA World Cup qualification campaign.
Bursaspor Experience
On June 22, 2017, Le Guen was announced as the new manager of Bursaspor, a team in the Turkish Süper Lig. His first game was on August 11, 2017. It was a 1–0 league defeat away to İstanbul Başakşehir. However, after a series of poor results, he was removed from his coaching position on April 10, 2018.
Back to France with Le Havre
On May 29, 2019, after ten years of managing teams abroad, Le Guen returned to France. He became the new manager of Le Havre. His first game as manager was on July 26, 2019. It ended in a 2–2 away draw against Ajaccio.
In his first season, the team finished in 6th place. Because of this, Le Guen signed a new contract in August 2020. This extended his deal by two years, until 2023. However, he was dismissed in June 2022. This happened because he had not led the team to promotion. Also, there were ongoing talks about selling the club to a North American group.
Personal Life
Paul Le Guen met his wife, Claude, while he was studying. He was getting a master's degree in Economic Sciences at the University of Western Brittany in Brest. As of 2006, they have three children. In 2006, Le Guen also ran the Marathon des Sables. This is a very tough race in the Moroccan desert.
Honours and Achievements
Paul Le Guen has won many awards both as a player and as a manager.
As a Player
Paris Saint-Germain
- Division 1: 1993–94
- Coupe de France: 1992–93, 1994–95, 1997–98
- Coupe de la Ligue: 1994–95, 1997–98
- Trophée des Champions: 1995
- UEFA Cup Winners' Cup: 1995–96; runner-up: 1996–97
As a Manager
Lyon
- Ligue 1: 2002–03, 2003–04, 2004–05
- Trophée des Champions: 2002, 2003, 2004
Paris Saint-Germain
- Coupe de la Ligue: 2007–08
- Coupe de France runner-up: 2007–08
See also
In Spanish: Paul Le Guen para niños
