Evening Standard
·18 July 2024
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Yahoo sportsEvening Standard
·18 July 2024
Todd Boehly’s BlueCo consortium hold a majority stake in the French club
Patrick Vieira has left Strasbourg by mutual consent after just one season in charge.
The French club are majority owned by BlueCo, the same consortium led by American Todd Boehly and Clearlake Capital which purchased Chelsea in 2022.
Strasbourg finished 13th last season in Ligue 1, having finished 15th the year before, and the decision has been made by the club and Viera to part ways.
"We would like to express our gratitude and thank Patrick for the work he has accomplished during this first phase of the project and we wish him much success in the future,” Strasbourg president Marc Keller said.
“He will always be welcome at the club.”
Vieira signed a three-year contract when arriving at Strasbourg in July last year, but his time in France has come to a premature end.
Speaking earlier this summer, the 48-year-old said the club were “part of the Chelsea family” as he admitted it has been a frustrating first season for him in the Strasbourg dugout.
He told the Stick to Football podcast: “Now one of the owners is Todd Boehly, so we are part of the Chelsea family.
“The ambition is to play European football in the next three years. Of course, coming from this year, there is a big turn of young players, and this year was challenging and difficult – we struggled and went through some difficult periods.
“Hopefully, we will keep our best young players, we’re going to try and improve the team and try to finish in the top 10 next year. Then, why not play European football in two years’ time from now?”