Laurent Blanc Appointed Manager of Al-Ittihad.

Posted 2 months ago

Former France national team coach Laurent Blanc has taken on a new challenge as he steps into the role of manager for Saudi Pro League club Al-Ittihad.

Laurent Blanc, who had been without a job since leaving Lyon in September 2023 due to mutual agreement with the club while they were at the bottom of Ligue 1, has now been appointed as the new manager of Saudi Pro League club Al-Ittihad.

The 58-year-old takes over from Marcelo Gallardo, who departed at the end of the 2023-24 season after failing to qualify for the Asian Champions League. Blanc will join fellow Frenchmen Karim Benzema and N'Golo Kante at the club.

Blanc's managerial career includes successful stints at Bordeaux, where he won the Ligue 1 title in 2008-09, and Paris St-Germain, where he secured three league championships. He also led the French national team to the quarter-finals of Euro 2012.

As a player, Blanc enjoyed spells in France, Italy, Spain, and England, notably winning the Premier League with Manchester United in 2003.

Al-Ittihad, nine-time champions of the Saudi Pro League, most recently claimed the title in 2022-23 but finished fifth in the previous season.