Ligue 1 2023–2024: A tactical analysis of Éric Roy’s masterful planning behind Brest’s incredible start to the season After six games in the 2023–24 Ligue 1 season, Brest leads the standings by one point, two ahead of Nice, and ahead of PSG and Monaco. Back in January, Éric Roy was appointed head coach of the first squad. The 56-year-old was appointed manager for the first time since he was under fire at Nice in 2011 — more than ten years ago.
Roy appeared to have abandoned coaching, filling the position of sporting director at Nice (2011–2012), Lens (2017–2019), and Watford (2019–2020) in his more than ten years away from the field of technical administration. Roy took a complete vacation from football during his tenure at Watford, which came to an end shortly after the Hornets’ Premier League relegation in 2019–20. He needed some time to gather his thoughts in order to return to management, which he accomplished with elegance. He was first entrusted with keeping Brest in Ligue 1 the previous season, and now he has the Brittany port city prospering in the top division.
This tactical analysis will dissect three key facets of Roy’s Brest tactics that have led to the team’s excellent performance this season. We’ll talk about Brest’s long passing, crossing, and pressing strategies because they’ve been successful in putting them into practice, which is why they’re presently leading the French league. Play directly from the rear We’ll start our study by concentrating on Brest’s in-possession play, particularly their direct style and propensity to play long from the back. In France’s premier division, the team with the seventh-highest average possession (50.7%) this season has also played the most long balls (46.67 per 90).
