Le Havre Close to Agreeing Deal with Valerien Ismael

French Ligue 1 club Le Havre is preparing to reach an agreement with Valerien Ismael for the head coach position.

According to L'Equipe, the French club, which has parted ways with Didier Digard, has reached the final stage of talks with the 51-year-old coach. Ismael's appointment is expected to be completed shortly. Ismael most recently managed English Championship side Blackburn Rovers and left the role in February.

As a player, the coach wore the shirts of clubs such as Bayern Munich, Strasbourg, Lens and Crystal Palace. He began his coaching career in 2014 and has managed teams including Nürnberg, Wolfsburg, Apollon Smyrnis, LASK Linz, Barnsley, West Bromwich, Watford and Blackburn Rovers. In Turkey, he took charge of Beşiktaş. He took over the black-and-whites in 2022 and left the role in October of the same year.

If the agreement is reached, Ismael will coach a team in France for the first time in his managerial career.