Born on August 12, 1936 in Sétif (Algeria), Rachid Mekhloufi is perhaps the first legend of the Greens. Steeped in talent, this designer was spotted and arrived in Saint-Étienne at the age of 18.
He quickly won over the Saint-Etienne public with the club's first championship title in 1957, a season in which he splashed his talent by scoring 25 goals.
First European scorer for the Greens
A few months later, he forever inscribed his name in the club's history by being ASSE's first scorer in the European Cup during a loss in Glasgow against Rangers (3-1, September 4). 1957). After four years away from France, he returned to Saint-Etienne in 1962 and quickly managed to win back the hearts of the public by winning the D2 title in 1963, before turning the title counter: he won the D1 in 1964 and 1967 , then finished in apotheosis with a championship-Coupe de France double in 1968. He notably scored the two victorious goals in this Cup final against Bordeaux (2-1).
Spearhead of the FLN
But its history is not limited to Saint-Étienne. If he was absent for four years between 1958 and 1962, it was to join Tunis and the FLN (National Liberation Front) team. He thus abandoned the idea of competing in the World Cup in Sweden (1958) with the Blues, in order to fight for the independence of Algeria, his country, he who experienced the horrors of French repression in his city of Setif when he was just a child.
He tiptoed back to Saint-Étienne in December 1962, a few months after the declaration of independence, to leave as a hero. A man of history on and off the field, he was a life ambassador for ASSE and died at the age of 88 this Friday, November 8.
France
