Patrick Vieira Hired as FC Nantes Manager for the 2025-26 Season
Patrick Vieira joins FC Nantes, looking to make a mark on French football after previous stints with NYCFC, Nice, Strasbourg, and Genoa
FC Nantes have announced the appointment of Patrick Vieira as head coach following the 2024–25 season, marking the start of a new chapter for one of France’s most historic clubs. The former Arsenal and France captain arrives with a clear vision: to blend Nantes’ traditional “jeu à la nantaise” with a modern, structured approach built on intensity, technical precision, and collective discipline.
Vieira’s managerial journey has been both diverse and instructive. After beginning his coaching career within Manchester City’s youth setup, he took charge of New York City FC in 2016, where he implemented a possession-based style influenced by Pep Guardiola’s philosophy. His NYCFC sides played out from the back, pressed high, and emphasized positional structure — an approach that laid the groundwork for consistent playoff appearances.
In 2018, Vieira returned to France with OGC Nice, steering a youthful squad to a 7th-place finish while integrating academy talents and encouraging fluid, attack-minded football. Later, at Crystal Palace in the Premier League, he earned plaudits for reshaping the team’s style — moving them away from deep-defensive setups to a more progressive, front-foot model. His most recent stints at Strasbourg in 2023–24 and Genoa in 2024-25 were marked by stabilization and the development of young talents.
At Nantes, Vieira is expected to prioritize tactical coherence and collective pressing, encouraging his players to dominate possession while maintaining defensive compactness. Early indications suggest he will favor a 4-3-3 or 4-2-3-1 system with dynamic midfielders and wide attackers who can interchange and press aggressively, although he may pivot from this to use a dual striker formation like the 4-1-2-1-2 if the need arises or it better suits the squad.
“FC Nantes has a soul built on collective football,” Vieira said at his unveiling. “My goal is to respect that identity — but bring it into the modern game.”
For Nantes fans, that promise represents both nostalgia and hope — a return to values that defined the club’s past, adapted for the football of tomorrow.
