Les Girondins de Bordeaux 1982-88

In 1980, Aimé Jacquet took charge of the Girondins de Bordeaux after a mixed stint at Olympique Lyonnais as coach. During the 1980-81 and 1981-82 seasons, the club finished 3rd and 4th in Ligue 1 with a good squad. Among the important players we find Marius Trésor, the famous libero and central defender, Gernot Rohr, the German left back, Jean Fernandez and Alain Giresse in midfield and Bernard Lacombe in attack.

At the start of the 1982-83 season, a large number of changes were made in the squad. For the departures, Gilles Eyquem, Albert Gemmrich, Nourredine Kourichi, Mario Relmy, Patrick Sanz, Gérard Soler but especially Jean Fernandez.

Arrivals are also numerous, the club wishes to increase its number of players to collect trophies. Michel Audrain, Raymond Domenech, Laurent Fourrier, Bernard Gimenez, Richard Ruffier, Léonard Specht are the French who join the group. But the transfer window does not stop there, Caspar Memering and especially Dieter Müller are the two big recruits in the Bordeaux transfer window.

The club continues its good development with a second place in the French championship, 3 players notably shone in the championship: Bernard Lacombe and his 20 goals, Dieter Müller and his 17 goals and Alain Giresse and his 12 goals. Behind, Marius Trésor is aging but still useful, Richard Ruffier and Christian Delachet are competing for the number 1 position as starting goalkeeper.

In the Coupe de France, the club lost 4-0 on aggregate in the round of 16. The club also participates in the UEFA Cup, the Europa League, and has had a good run. During the 32nd finals, the club eliminated FC Carl Zeiss Léna after a comeback (defeat in the first leg 3-1 before winning the return match 5-0).

During the round of 16, the club made a second comeback, this time against Hajduk Split, losing 4-1 in the first leg and winning 4-0 in the return match. Unfortunately, the Girondins collapsed in the next round against the Romanian club Universitatea Craiova 2-1 on aggregate.

The 1983-84 season must be that of confirmation and finally success on French soil for the Bordeaux club. The club has made a superb recruit in the person of Patrick Battiston, the French international, Thierry Tusseau and Bernard Zénier also join the squad. F. Bracci, L. Fourrier, Alain Garraud, Dragan Pantelic leave the club.

The club is fighting in the championship with AS Monaco, one victory each. The final day ends with the two teams leading the championship with 54 points. But the Girondins, who had a much better attack, won the championship on goal difference, finishing with a goal difference of +39. Their attack finished as the best attack in the championship with 72 goals scored, far ahead of Auxerre and its 59 goals scored. In this French championship, Alain Giresse, attacking midfielder, scored 16 goals, Bernard Lacombe 18 and Dieter Müller 14.

In the Coupe de France, the results are mixed with an elimination in the quarter-final against FC Mulhouse 1893, then in the second division. In the UEFA Cup, the club was humiliated by the German club 1. FC Lokomotive Leipzig, who beat them 7-2 on aggregate in the first round.

Still in his 4-2-1-2, Aimé Jacquet led his team to a historic 1984-85 season. The club first made a legendary recruit with the Portuguese Chalana who joined the Girondins for 2.5 million euros. Dominique Dropsy and Joël Lopez also join the club. Marius Trésor retires at 34. R. Domenech, Caspar Memering, Richard Ruffier and Bernard Zénier leave the club.

With this team, the club continued to dominate the French championship and won it again, this time with 59 points, 3 points ahead of an attractive FC Nantes team.

Bernard Lacombe, who was then 32 years old, had a great season, 26 goals in 46 matches in all competitions. Dieter Müller scored 19 goals in 46 matches. Chalana struggles to convince despite the status of a Portuguese legend, only 16 small matches and 1 goal scored. In the middle, it is Jean Tigana and Alain Giresse who show the extent of their talent. The first is a wonderful defensive midfielder, capable of stringing together runs and the second is a formidable attacking midfielder who is very regular and efficient. Battiston, the libero of this team, scores 8 goals in 44 matches. The goalkeeper, Dominique Dropsy, is having a very good season since he has 21 clean sheets in 49 matches, and only conceded 42 goals.

However, we feel that this team is getting older with an eleven with a high average age: 30 years old.

In the Coupe de France, the club was knocked out by LOSC in the round of 16. But it is in the Champions League that the club will achieve a historic run. In the first round, the club faced Athletic Bilbao, recent Spanish champion and formidable opponent, winning 3-2 on aggregate. In the second round, a narrow 2-1 aggregate victory against Dinamo București offered a place in the quarter after extra time (goal from Lacombe to give the Girondins victory).

For these quarter-finals, the Girondins face a big player, the USSR club Dnipro Dnipropetrovsk, first leg 1-1, return match 1-1 after extra time, the penalty session gives Bordeaux an advantage. During the semi-finals, the club faced Juventus of a certain Platini. Platini also scored in the first leg, a 3-0 victory for Juventus. The Bordelais must now dream of an exploit, Müller scores in the 25th, Battiston in the 80th, the Girondins push but do not succeed, Juventus goes 3-2 on aggregate.

Bordeaux also lost the Champions Trophy, on penalties against Monaco after a sad 1-1 in regulation time.

The 1985-86 season was disappointing, Dieter Müller was replaced by another German Uwe Reinders, and even if he had a rather good season individually, the club did not succeed. Eliminated in the first round of the Champions League, the club finished 3rd in the French championship.

A little behind, Bordeaux concentrates on the Coupe de France which they have not won since 1941, despite finals in 1943, 1952, 1955, 1964, 1968 and 1969. Bordeaux successively eliminates Toulouse (D1), the AS Red Star 93 (D2), Entente Chaumont AC (D2), FC Tours (D2), and Paris Saint-Germain FC (D1) to reach the final. Their opponent is Olympique de Marseille, a great club of this period. Despite Marseille's Diallo opening the score on a penalty in the 45th minute, it was Bordeaux who won the final thanks to goals from Tigana (53rd) and Giresse (117th).

That season, but played in January 1987, the club also won the Champions Trophy against PSG, with a score of 1-0.

During the 1986-87 season, Aimé Jacquet will alternate between different tactical plans, sometimes with the appearance of a 5-2-2-1 composition. Among the departures, we can note those of Alain Giresse, absolute legend of the club and Uwe Reinders who only spent one season at the club. J.-M. Ferreri, José Touré, Philippe Vercruysse, Zlatko Vujovic, Zoran Vujovic, Philippe Fargeon are recruited.

This season will be that of the goalkeeper still in place Dominique Dropsy, who at 35 years old is surely having his best individual season. 57 matches played, 29 clean sheets and only 42 goals conceded. This is also due to an iron defense led by Patrick Battiston, Léonard Specht, Zoran Vujovic, Jean-Christophe Thouvenel and a youngster named Alain Roche who at only 19 years old played 43 matches.

In midfield, René Girard and Jean Tigana who are aging (33 and 32 years old) are still as strong and excellent in defensive play as in getting the ball up. Both participated in more than 50 games during the season as starters. Chalana, who had a 2-game season during the previous season, did not play a minute during this one, in favor of a very efficient Philippe Vercruysse, 13 goals in 40 games as the playmaker of this season. team.

Offensively, Bernard Lacombe must give up his starting place, and it is Philippe Fargeon and Zlatko Vujovic who benefit the most, between them they have scored 40 goals.

In the championship, the club finished in 1st place in the championship, Bordeaux is no longer this very offensive team but more in score management, helped by the experience of its players. 4 small points separate them from their runner-up, Olympique de Marseille who finished second with 49 points.

In the Coupe de France, the club reached the final again and won the trophy again, in a final won 2–0 against Marseille. Fargeon and Vujović as scorers.

The club played in the Cup Winners Cup that season and had a very good run. They eliminated the Irish team of Waterford United 6-1 in the first round, then that of Benfica Lisbon 2-1. In the quarter-final, the French club beat the Torpedo Moscow team thanks to the one-goal rule. away after a cumulative score of 3-3. Unfortunately, the club lost in the semi-final during a penalty shootout against Lokomotive Leipzig.

The following season, the club reached the quarter-finals of the Champions League and finished second in the French championship, but the team was generally disappointing; it would be necessary to wait a few years before returning to a good Girondins de Bordeaux team.