Eric Roy dies aged 58, Brest’s ‘King Eric’ who led club to Champions League | OneFootball

Eric Roy died on Wednesday aged 58. According to L'Équipe, the ex Brest coach and ex Nice, Lyon and Marseille midfielder led Brest to the Champions League in 2024 and was voted Ligue 1 coach of the year.

He devoted his life to football as player, coach, executive and TV consultant. Nice mourns one of its own and Brest fans their King Eric. His playing career ran from 1988 to 2004 without silverware.

Born in Nice to a Niçoise mother and Burgundian father, Serge Roy, a one-cap France striker, he long regretted missing Les Bleus. Touted during his Lyon spell, he later pointed to elite rivals Desailly, Deschamps, Karembeu, Petit and Vieira.

A product of Cavigal before joining the Gym at 19, he built a reputation as a combative, composed midfielder. He trekked through Toulon, Lyon, Marseille, Sunderland, Troyes and Rayo Vallecano, returning to Nice in 2002. In 1996 his late strike for Lyon in the League Cup final was disallowed for dangerous play, and Lyon lost 0-0, 4-5 on penalties.

While finishing his career he studied at the CDES in Limoges, then returned to Nice in 2005 as marketing director and later sporting director. Appointed head coach in March 2010, he kept the team up and left in November 2011. In January 2023 he answered Brest’s call, lifted the club from danger to third in under 18 months, and the Pirates impressed in the league phase before losing to eventual European champions PSG.

Source: L'Équipe