AS Monaco Mourns Jean Petit, Legend of 426 Matches and Forty Years of Loyalty

Jean Petit, an inseparable figure of AS Monaco for more than four decades, passed away on January 23, 2024, at the age of 74. Nicknamed « Jeannot » by those close to him and his teammates, he leaves behind one of the most remarkable stories of loyalty in French football.

A native of Toulouse and trained at Toulouse FC, Petit wore only one professional shirt: that of AS Monaco, from 1969 to 1982. In thirteen seasons, the midfielder played 426 matches and scored 78 goals, winning two French championship titles, in 1978 and 1982. In the same year as his first title, he was named best French player of the year. Capped twelve times between 1977 and 1980, he went through Monaco’s ups and downs in the second division and climbs back up, never leaving the Rocher.

« He is the very symbol of loyalty, he arrived at Monaco and experienced everything there: the highs, the lows, the drop to the second division, the climb back up and then the titles… And he always stayed there! », summed up Rolland Courbis, his former teammate for five seasons.

After his playing career, Petit took on various roles within the club: assistant coach, interim coach, sporting director, and then sporting adviser. From 1987 to 2014, he worked alongside seven different managers — Arsène Wenger, Jean Tigana, Claude Puel, Didier Deschamps, Ricardo, Claudio Ranieri and Marco Simone. Sébastien Squillaci described him as « always kind-hearted, in good spirits and even a joker ».

Didier Deschamps, who began his managerial career at Monaco between 2001 and 2005, paid him a personal tribute: « I will never forget the total and precious support he gave me for three years when I was starting out as a manager at AS Monaco, after a first season that was, to say the least, complicated without him. »

Jean Petit would have celebrated his 77th birthday on the day AS Monaco announced his passing. More than forty years in the service of a single club: an entire life driven by a rare loyalty in professional football.