On Wednesday, Queens Park Rangers announced the appointment of Frenchman Julien Stéphan, replacing Marti Cifuentes after his extended period of gardening leave and eventual departure by mutual consent from the QPR role.
The Superhoops have become the joint-most backed team for promotion since the announcement, according to Betfred.
The question is why, and should Rs fans feel optimistic about their new man?
The Head Coach’s Journey
Stéphan rose through the ranks at Rennes after arriving as a youth coach in 2012 before becoming Head Coach in 2018. In the same season he helped the French side reach the Europa League last sixteen, eventually losing out on aggregate to Premier League side Arsenal despite a 3-1 victory in the home leg.
Stéphan also achieved history with the club, for whom his father once played for, by winning the Coupe de France in a comeback win against PSG, the first major piece of silverware for Rennes in 48 years.
The following season Stéphan accomplished the unthinkable, coaching his side to 3rd in Ligue 1 in a campaign abridged by the pandemic, bringing Champions League football to Brittany for the first time.
Leaving the club during the following season after a poor run of fixtures, Stéphan would arrive at Strasbourg. With the BlueCo affiliated side, he would finish in a dizzying sixth place but find himself out of a job once more in 2023, after a disastrous start to the season. Another short-lived stint back with Rennes would follow, being sacked in November 2024 with his side just a point above the relegation zone.
Stéphan’s Abilities
Stéphan is renowned for his ability to coach younger players, arguably a key reason for his appointment at Loftus Road, as QPR seek to focus on developing younger talent. The Frenchman has coached the likes of Champions League winners Ousmane Démbéle, Désiré Doué, and Eduardo Camavinga at various age groups with Rennes. With Rangers’ recruitment skewing young, this willingness and capability to rely upon and improve youth prospects cannot be understated.
Despite receiving criticism in the past for his unwillingness to change tactics, Stéphan prefers his side to be flexible, shifting between 4-4-2, 4-2-3-1 and 3-5-2 depending on opponents and in-game situations to create numerical dominance.
His sides defend narrow but look to spread play wide when in possession, looking to exploit spaces created by short passing in behind the lines, where direct and pacey wingers are given freedom to cause damage to opposition defences. Out of possession, Stéphan prefers defensive rigidity and covering of space rather than pressing opponents.
A Good Manager For Queens Park Rangers?
Julien Stéphan is clearly a coach with pedigree, and should be regarded as a coup for QPR, who have consistently struggled with relegation battles in recent times. However, only time will tell if the Stéphan the West London club will get is the all-conquering Champion who has seen many of his former prospects achieve tremendous success, or the coach who has failed to recover from poor spells on a number of occasions and found himself unemployed as a result.
At a club similarly marred by inconsistency and streaky form, it should be with cautious optimism that Rangers fans look towards the Stéphan era at Loftus Road.
Written by Amar Topan (@W12Amar On X)
