News broke recently about six-time Ligue 1 champions Bordeaux entering into administration after their US owners, King Street, withdrew financial support for the club. The French club had been hit hard by the Covid-19 pandemic and LFP’s collapsed deal with MediaPro. The club has been put under the protection of the commercial court.
It was just over a decade ago that Bordeaux won the Ligue 1 title. The Girondins had been a force in the French league during the 2000s, winning seven major honours in what was the club’s best run in their history. The 2008/09 title, though, was the cream of the crop for Bordeaux.
The club had shown promise during the 2007/08 campaign but finished a disappointing sixth. The new season saw Girondins appointing French World Cup winner Laurent Blanc as their new manager. Helped by the arrival of Yoann Gourcuff and the backbone made of several academy graduates, Bordeaux made a strong start to the season. They clinched the title from Marseille on the last day after going on an 11-game winning streak.
Note: Only players who made at least ten appearances have been considered.
The Bordeaux Ligue 1 Champions of 2008/09
Goalkeepers
Ulrich Rame
Conceding just 23 goals, Ulrich Rame led from the back for the majority of the 2008/09 season. Nearing the twilight of his career, the former French international captained Bordeaux to their sixth, and to date their last, Ligue 1 title.
The first-choice custodian for more than a decade, Rame appeared 525 times for the French side and is the second-most capped player in their history. Rame oversaw the club’s most decorated era of this century. After being the undisputed starter for more than a decade, Rame left the club in 2011 to join Ligue 2 side Sedan and retired two years later.
Mathieu Valverde
More an understudy, Mathieu Valverde shone when put under the spotlight following Rame’s injury. The second-choice keeper made 15 appearances and conceded just 11 goals as he proved himself a more than capable substitute for Rame.
The Frenchman, though, left Bordeaux at the end of the season after a decent campaign. Valverde went on to play for several clubs before retiring in 2017 after a stint in the Cypriot league.
Defenders
Franck Jurietti
A Lyon youth academy graduate, Franck Jurietti was on the last lap of his career as Bordeaux clinched the title. The defender had reached his mid-30s but still mustered up 18 appearances during the victorious campaign.
In seven seasons at the Stade Chaban-Delmas, Jurietti made 223 appearances and scored three goals. The Frenchman retired in 2010 after Bordeaux refused to renew his contract.
Henrique
A valuable squad player, Henrique made 16 starts during the season and chipped in with the winner against Nice at home. The Brazilian was a rotational player throughout his career in France. Despite spending nine seasons at the Chaban-Delmas, Henrique did not make more than 20 appearances in the league in a single season. He was a rotational player at Bordeaux and spent nine seasons at the club, amassing 208 appearances and scoring 14 goals.
The Brazilian also famously scored an 89th-minute cup-winning goal against Lyon in the 2007 French Cup. Henrique left the club and returned to Flamengo in 2014 before calling it a day two years later.
Benoit Tremoulinas
One of the best academy graduates to come out of Bordeaux in recent times, Benoit Tremoulinas played an integral role in helping his childhood club reach the promised land. With five assists, the Frenchman was one of the leading assist makers during the season. In fact, his assist helped Bordeaux clinch the title on the final day of the season.
Tremoulinas made over 200 appearances at Stade Chaban-Delmas and ended a 19-year association with Bordeaux in 2013 to join Dynamo Kyiv. The defender went on to play for Saint Etienne and Sevilla before retiring in 2017 after struggling with knee injuries.
Marc Planus
The heart and soul of the team, Marc Planus was colossal in defence for the Girondins. The Frenchman also scored a goal and made an assist as Bordeaux lifted their sixth league title.
One of those rare one-club men in football, Planus spent 13 seasons at Stade Chaban-Delmas and retired at the end of the 2014/15 season. The defender finished eighth on the list of Bordeaux’s all-time appearance makers with 381 appearances.
Souleymane Diawara
The star man of the Bordeaux backline, Souleymane Diawara was the other half of Laurent Blanc’s impressive defence. The Cameroonian missed just three matches during that season and his impressive performances earned him a place in the 2008/09 Ligue1 Team of the Year.
Diawara spent just two seasons at Bordeaux and moved to Marseille at the end of the 2008/09 season. The defender played six more seasons in the Ligue 1 before retiring in 2015 after a season with Nice.
Matthieu Chalme
The right-back completes Bordeaux’s 2008/09 title-winning defence. Matthieu Chalme provided fours assists and chipped in with a single goal during the victorious campaign. He spent seven seasons at the port city before retiring at Bordeaux at the end of the 2013/14 season.
Midfield
Abdou Traore
Another valuable squad player at Bordeaux, Abdou Traore made his debut during Girondins’ title-winning season. The midfielder made 13 appearances in the league during the season but failed to find the net.
After nine seasons at the club, Traore moved to Saudi Arabia in 2018. The Malian has been a free agent since 2018 following his brief one year spell with Al-Nahda.
Fernando Menegazzo
During his time with Bordeaux, the Brazilian was so good that he earned a call-up to the national squad for the 2007 Copa America. One of the first names on the teamsheet during his time at the Stade Chaban-Delmas, Fernando Menegazzo made 31 appearances during the victorious campaign.
Menegazzo chipped in with six goals and an assist during the 2008/09 season. The Brazilian spent six seasons in Southwestern France and moved to Saudi Arabian side Al-Shabab in 2011. He retired three years later after one year back in Europe with Club Brugge.
Alou Diarra
An ever-present figure in the line-up throughout his Bordeaux career, Alou Diarra missed just 19 matches in his four seasons at the club. The former French international played 35 league matches during the 2008/09 league and scored two goals. Of those, a 43rd-minute winner against Lyon in the 32nd game week helped Bordeaux stave off the challenge from Les Gones.
Diarra went onto captain Bordeaux the next season and later moved to Marseille in 2011. The Frenchman had spells with West Ham United, Rennes, Charlton Athletic and Nancy before calling it a day in 2017.
Wendel
One half of Bordeaux’s impressive attacking midfield, Wendel provided a career-high nine assists during the 2008/09 Ligue1 season to guide Bordeaux to the title. His impressive assist tally made him the second-highest assists maker during that season, only behind teammate Yoann Gourcuff.
The Brazilian spent four seasons in the French city before moving to other pastures. Like many of his teammates, he moved to Saudi Arabia in 2011. Wendel later moved back to Brazil, where he finished his career at Nautico in 2018.
Yoann Gourcuff
The most talented and decorated player of the underrated Bordeaux side, Yoann Gourcuff arrived at the Stade Chaban-Delmas on loan from AC Milan. The Frenchman had an instant impact on the team and proved himself as the ‘X Factor’ that helped Bordeaux go from being sixth up to the top
The attacking midfielder’s impressive performances bagged him the Ligue 1 Player of the Season award. He also won the Goal of the Year award and was part of the 2008/09 Team of the Year. Gourcuff ended the 2008/09 season with an impressive tally of 12 goals and 11 assists.
The former French international made his mov3 permanent the following season but left the club in 2010 to join Lyon. Gourcuff went onto have spells at Rennes and Dijon before retiring in 2019.
Forwards
Jussie
The Brazilian spent eight seasons at Stade Chaban-Delmas, joining the club in 2007 from RC Lens. Jussie made around 250 appearances for Girondins, with over 100 of them coming from the bench. The attacking midfielder also chipped in with two goals and an assist during their victorious 2008/09 season.
Jussie ended his eight-year association with the club in 2016 after the club decided against renewing the Brazilian’s contract. He retired a year later after failing to secure another contract.
Yoan Gouffran
Yoan Gouffran earned a move to Bordeaux in 2008 after guiding Caen to Ligue 1. It was a very poor start for the Frenchman as he failed to score in his first 26 matches. But, the striker burst into life towards the rear end of the season, scoring twice in the last five league matches. In fact, it was Gouffran who scored the goal that helped Bordeaux clinch the title on the final day.
The striker spent five seasons at the Stade Chaban-Delmas, later moving to Newcastle United and Goztepe. Gouffran currently plays in the Armenian league with Ararat-Armenia.
David Bellion
The Manchester United flop played a crucial role in helping Bordeaux win the 2008/09 title. The Frenchman had a great season, scoring 12 goals during the 2007/08 season. But, the striker failed to replicate his form and scored just four goals in the league despite making 27 appearances.
Bellion spent seven seasons at the club before moving to Red Star n 2014 and retiring from the game two years later.
Fernando Cavenaghi
One half of Bordeaux’s high-scoring strike duo, Fernando Cavenaghi had his most successful European sojourn at Bordeaux. After finishing with 15 goals during the 2007/08 campaign, the Argentine carried on from where he left off and scored 13 goals the following season and ending up as Girondins joint-topscorer Ligue 1. He formed an impressive trident with Marouane Chamakh and Yoann Gourcuff, which wreaked havoc with opposition defences.
The journeyman striker played his best football in Europe at Bordeaux but he never really kicked on after two good seasons. The Argentine finally left the club in 2010 after making 108 appearances and scoring 46 goals. Cavenaghi went on to play for a host of clubs before injury forced him to retire in 2016.
Marouane Chamakh
The Moroccan was entirely a different player at his boyhood club Bordeaux. Chamakh started really drawing the attention of European clubs following his impressive 2008/09 season. After a lacklustre start, the striker burst into form, scoring 11 goals in the last 22 matches for the Girondins. The striker ended the season as the club’s joint-top scorer in Ligue 1 with 13 goals.
Chamakh spent eight seasons at Bordeaux and left the club on a free in 2010. The Moroccan made 301 appearances and scored 76 goals during this period. In fact, Chamakh is the fourth highest capped non-French player in the history of Bordeaux.
The Moroccan went onto have spells with Arsenal, West Ham and Crystal Palace before retiring in 2017 after a brief stint in the championship with Cardiff City.
Gabriel Obertan
The academy graduate missed the chance to lift the trophy with his Bordeaux teammates after moving on loan to Lorient. The 2007/08 season was a breakthrough season for Gabriel Obertan and had projected him as one of the most up and coming talents in French football. But when Laurent Blanc took the helm of Bordeaux, Obertan’s playing time fell. The attacker made just two starts before his loan move.
Despite playing just half of the season at the Stade Chaban-Delmas, Obertan made 11 appearances for the Girondins. The Frenchman went on to play in England, Russia, Bulgaria before joining Turkish side Erzurumspor last year.
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