What AS Roma fans can expect from new boss Rudi Garcia

Sometimes you just know it’s the right time. There are no bad feelings on either side, but something just isn’t right. Maybe you’ll both be happier apart, one day finding love again with another. Things had started to crack before Christmas. There were rumblings of distrust; questions regarding his methods and actions cast a shadow over the team. After a break and some time apart, relationships were healed and things got a little better, but come May it was clear for everyone watching. It was time for Rudi Garcia to leave Lille.

The former player and now former manager agreed to join Italian club AS Roma last week and this ended a fantastic five year stint in charge of LOSC. In that time he continued to establish their position as one of France’s biggest teams, ended a 56-year gap without a trophy, winning the league and cup double, and did all this will having to watch his best players leave, and constantly rebuilding. It is easy to see why no Lille fans have any bad blood with Garcia. He is one of them, he was there when the club spent the 80s in Ligue 2, and now he has his own place in the club’s history.

Over those five years Garcia has guided Lille through two Champions League and two Europa League campaigns, but will still remain a relative unknown to Roma fans. No doubt they will be unsure what kind of coach they have brought on board. Garcia is a man who is still learning, but with every step he has taken up the ladder he has not only studied the game and learnt his trade but also taken each team forward. Undoubtedly AS Roma will be his toughest test yet.

He was successful in taking Dijon to the second division, earning a move to Le Mans. He guided them to a 9^th place finish in Ligue 1 and a cup semi-final, not bad for a team that have now been relegated to the third division – showing the influence Garcia had on the side. The move to Lille gave Garcia the chance to show what he could do on a larger scale. Taking over from the strict and tactical style of Claude Puel, Garcia quickly transformed Les Dogues from a defensive counter-attacking side into a free-flowing forward-thinking side that dominated the scoring charts in France during his reign.

Under Claude Puel, Lille played mostly 4-5-1 and liked to sit back and hit on the counter-attack. With Garcia in charge there was a subtle change to 4-3-3, the full-backs were given a license to roam forward, the transformation of Mathieu Debuchy from midfielder to full-back certainly showed the attacking intent he wanted from the wide men.

He added Florent Balmont to the midfield, instantly adding a bit more fire and drive to the middle of the park. Rio Mavuba was signed permanently from Villarreal after imposing himself on the side under Puel, and the talents of Yohan Cabaye were starting to emerge. At the time there were many that believe this midfield trio was the best in France. There was no argument as Lille surprised everyone by winning the title. All three men played their part beautifully.

Rio Mavuba (the sitter), Florent Balmont (the workhorse), and Yohan Cabaye (the creative force) – the balance was superb and they provided the perfect combination to support Eden Hazard, Gervinho and Moussa Sow upfront. A total of 68 goals that season, six ahead of Marseille, combined with the 2^nd best defensive record showed that Garcia balanced the team perfectly.

Throughout his time he kept to 4-3-3, and although there were slight adaptations to the shape when the personnel changed, it followed the same attacking, short-passing, interchanging philosophy. He had to cope with his best players being sold year after year, adapting his formation to suit the players leaving, and bring in replacements while cutting costs. A job not many could have managed while keeping Lille in the race for Champions League football. This season the problems began to show, and the balance was lost as both full-backs were allowed to bomb forward and support the attack, and with Mavuba and Balmont a little older and Cabaye sold to Newcastle, the midfield didn’t provide the same protection.

This leads to the biggest concern about Garcia’s ability as a coach. He doesn’t seem to have a Plan B at times. On too many occasions when the opposition found a game plan to frustrate Lille, the free-flowing football disappeared. Keeping the attack in front of the defence often led to a lack of creativity and players like Dimitri Payet resorting to shots from distance. Usually within the first 20 minutes it was possible to tell if Lille were going to score from open play or not. Sometimes a set-piece or defensive mistake would save them, but it rarely came from Garcia’s tactical changes.

Rarely do his subs change the game in a huge way; you are more likely to see like-for-like changes, than a change in formation or tactics. A number of times this season you could hear the confusion in the stands as Garcia signalled for a change, but the player going off or coming on had the Lille fans scratching their heads. He is not afraid to make a change, often (near 99% of the time) using all three substitutes, it’s just the changes being made that leave you wondering.

One advantage that Roma will have over Lille is the role that Garcia has been given. At Lille he was one of the rare coaches in Ligue 1 that had so much say over matters off the pitch. Questions over some of his signings and contract decisions are what caused the rift between the coach and the boardroom. Neglecting youth and favouring experienced players with less quality marred his last season at Lille. It wasn’t until he began to trust the likes of Idrissa Gueye and Ronny Rodelin that Lille looked much more vibrant in the second half of the season.

There is no doubt that Garcia will play an attacking style when he gets his hands on the Roma squad for the new season. When it works it is beautiful to watch and Roma fans will be dazzled by the quick passing and intelligent movement that he likes to install. The problem will come when teams learn his style and find a way to break it down. This is where you hope Garcia has developed his game during his five years at Lille.