Alain Giresse Profile

Born in Langoiran, just on the outskirts of Bordeaux, Giresse signed up professionally with the Girondins as an 18 year old in 1970. He would go on to spend a fantastic 16 years with the club, and the final few years of his career there would be his best, captaining the side in the club's greatest period as they won two Ligue 1 titles, in 1983-1984 and 1984-1985 , and the Coupe de France in 1986, as well as reaching the semi-final of the European Cup in the 1984-85 campaign, narrowly missing out to eventual champions Juventus. Giresse's performances for the club saw him named French Player of the Year in both 1982 and 1983. Giresse's goalscoring record was excellent. When he played his final match for Bordeaux, Giresse had amassed an incredible 592 competitive appearances for the club, scoring 181 goals along the way. Two incredible stats that still make Giresse the all-time leading appearance maker and goalscorer for Bordeaux, and the reason why he's a true icon of the club. In 1986 he moved to Olympique Marseille , where he became one of the first signings of new president Bernard Tapie. He played two seasons on the south coast before retiring in 1988. Whilst he would just miss out on the real glory years at the Stade Velodrome, his performances in his first year would see him help push the club to a runners-up spot and saw him named French Player of the Year again in 1987.