He spent $63 million, signed Matic, wanted Nasri to assist him - but all his plans went to hell

Departing from his position as the coach of Stade Rennais, Bruno Genesio reportedly wished to have former international midfielder Samir Nasri as his assistant four months ago. It's now all in the domain of "should have, would have, could have" but there it is.

Bruno Genesio's journey at Stade Rennais is coming to an end. Although the Breton club has not yet officially announced the departure of the 57-year-old coach, the Red & Blacks will officially confirm Genesio's departure after the international break. It's difficult, at this point, to precisely determine what led Genesio to leave more than a year before the end of his contract. In what proved to be his last league game in charge, he had a big argument with a member of Olympique Lionnais' coaching staff after helping his former club get their first win of the season. It only showed how much tension there was around him.

Not even the signing of legendary midfielder Nemanja Matic from AS Roma helped the club from northwest France find a winning rhythm. The additions of Enzo Le Fee ($22 million from Lorient), Ludovic Blas ($16 million from Nantes) and Fabian Rieder ($16 million from Young Boys) failed to bring the desired effect to Genesio's team. The club splashed around $63 million on new players without improving the team - and now the coach has to pay the price.

The disappointing results of Stade Rennais, currently 13th in Ligue 1, have made him vulnerable and seriously frustrated. Ten days ago, after a victory against Panathinaikos (3-1) in the Europa League, he raised a few eyebrows with his post-match comments.

"I warn everyone. I didn't come to Rennes to aim for 10th place or to do victory laps when we win a match."

Seeking to instil a winning culture in his team, Genesio failed in this regard. Was he also upset by certain decisions made by the club's management? According to L'Equipe, he had wished to have former France international Samir Nasri as an assistant coach during the offseason. At 36 years old, Nasri, who notably played for Marseille, Arsenal, and Manchester City, and has since worked as a pundit for Canal+, did not arrive at Roazhon Park. Retired since the age of 34, Nasri has never held the position of assistant coach. Maybe he was the missing ingredient for Genesio - but we'll never know.

Remember the name! Leny Yoro turns 18 today, but he's been turning heads of big clubs for quite a while

Genesio will be replaced by Julien Stephan, who was ironically also his predecessor at Stade Rennais. Stephan resigned in March 2021 after a run of seven games without a win and four consecutive defeats. In the meantime, he coached Strasbourg but was dismissed in January 2023. Is he the answer to Rennes' problems? We're not overly convinced.