Henri Michel (28 October 1947 – 24 April 2018) was a French football player and coach. He played as a midfielder for Nantes and the France national team, and later went on to coach various clubs and national teams all over the world. He coached France at the 1986 World Cup, where they reached the semi-final.
Playing career
Michel played for AS Aix between 1964 and 1966. He then moved to FC Nantes where he played from 1966 until his retirement in 1982. Michel also played 58 times for the France national football team, and was selected for their 1978 World Cup squad.
Management career
France
Michel managed the French national team, guiding the gold medal at the 1984 Summer Olympics, and the third place at the 1986 World Cup.
Cameroon
In 1994, he managed Cameroon.
Morocco
Michel had two stints with Morocco, the first being between 1995 and 2000.
His second stint, beginning in 2007, was short-lived with a poor showing at the Africa Cup of Nations 2008 where Morocco left in the first round. This resulted in his sacking from the post in February 2008.
Tunisia
From 2001 to 2002, he coached Tunisia. He was fired when Tunisia exited the 2002 African Cup of Nations in the first round after failing to score a single goal.
Côte d’Ivoire
In 2006, he managed the Côte d’Ivoire national football team at the 2006 FIFA World Cup, where they played well but went down to two defeats by Argentina and the Netherlands, before beating Serbia & Montenegro 3–2 in their final match.
El Zamalek
After the 2006 World Cup he joined the Egyptian club Zamalek. He left the club in 2007 to return to Morocco.
Sundowns
In 2008, he was appointed coach of Mamelodi Sundowns in South Africa. He left in March 2009 after being chased by an angry mob demanding his resignation.
El Zamalek
After two years turned back to El Zamalek on 30 August 2009 and on 30 November 2009 El Zamalek officials have fired the French coach due to negative results, the team was 15 points behind bitter rivals Al Ahly in the Egyptian league.
Raja Casablanca
Henri Michel was named Raja de Casablanca manager on 11 June 2010.
Equatorial Guinea
On 10 December 2010, Michel was hired head coach of the Equatorial Guinea to lead the team for 2012 Africa Cup of Nations they will co-host with Gabon. He suddenly resigned from his post on 19 October 2011, with the Africa Cup of Nations three months away, because he said he could not have the best players in the country, but five days later he was rehired thanks to the dismissal of Sports Minister Ruslan Obiang Nsue. On 21 December 2011, he resigned as coach of Equatorial Guinea again, citing interference from a “third party” as the reason for his departure.
Kenya
On 28 August 2012, Michel was named by the Football Kenya Federation (FKF) as the head coach of the Harambee Stars, taking over from James Nandwa, who was acting as manager on a caretaker basis. Barely four months later, he resigned, stating that he “could not find an amicable agreement within the deadlines regarding my compliance with several provisions of the contract”. The FKF has also stated that they were disappointed with his attitude especially in looking down towards local tournaments, even describing the 2012 CECAFA Cup as useless and sent Nandwa to handle the team as interim coach.
Death
Michel died in 24 April 2018, aged 70. The cause of death was not disclosed.
