Der Zakarian returns to Nantes ten years after acrimonious departure

Michel Der Zakarian is set to return to the FC Nantes dugout, ten years after a dramatic departure and seven years of legal battle. According to Ouest-France, the 62-year-old manager has signed a two-year contract with the Breton club, freshly relegated to Ligue 2.

Der Zakarian knows the Beaujoire well: he has already managed there twice, between 2007 and 2008, then between 2012 and 2016. His departure in 2016, however, left scars. President Waldemar Kita had publicly humiliated him, comparing Claudio Ranieri to a Mercedes and his former manager to a 2CV. Words that had sparked a long cold war between the two men.

The conflict extended to the courts until 2023, the year FC Nantes was ordered to pay Der Zakarian a seniority bonus of 184,000 euros that he had been claiming since his departure. Seven years of proceedings, punctuated by acrimonious exchanges in the press and tense confrontations on the pitch, notably during matches between Nantes and Montpellier, a club that Der Zakarian also managed.

Reconciliation appears to have been facilitated by Waldemar Kita’s son, in a context where the Nantes club, founded in 1943 and five-time French champions, must bounce back quickly after its first relegation since 2007. Der Zakarian is expected to arrive in Nantes in the coming days, accompanied by his assistants David Bechkoura and Vitorino Hilton. Faouzi Amzal is expected to retain his position as goalkeeper coach.

FC Nantes will begin its Ligue 2 season on August 8 at home, behind closed doors, against Red Star.