SM Caen. Between Gérard Prêcheur and Malherbe, the graft did not take

First come, first gone. Gérard Prêcheur was the bridgehead of the Mbappé project in Stade Malherbe Caen (Calvados). The former trainer of the Real Madrid striker, at INF Clairefontaine, arrived in Venoix in the summer of 2024, even before the formalization of the takeover of the club by Coalition Capital, the investment fund of Kylian Mbappé.

Criticized management, (very) fresh relationships

The technical director resigned from his position at the beginning of January 2025, between the first two matches of the Baltazar era. A coach whose arrival he had validated, according to the words of President Ziad Hammoud.

The reasons for his departure are rather to be found in his relations with the training center weed specialist, led by Mathieu Ballon. Already fresh due to management described as authoritarian by some, these relations have become even more strained in November, following statements by the former coach of Olympique Lyonnais and Paris Saint-Germain women in several interviews. He explained, in essence, that the educators at Stade Malherbe had never known other professional clubs, which explained, according to him, the declining results of the club’s youth teams in recent years.

Means obtained

This close friend of the Mbappé family, however, managed to convince the new shareholders to invest in human resources to supervise young weed-growing shoots. He brought back Laurent Lesgent and Frédéric Petereyns, two veterans of the house, and obtained the arrival of a chef at the training center…

Despite the good results of the young people this season (the reserves are 8th in N3, the U19s, 3rd one point behind the co-leaders in the championship and qualified for the 1/16 finals of the Gambardella, the U17s are at the top of their group), the incompatibilities were apparently too great.

Follow all the news from your favorite cities and media by subscribing to Mon Actu.