The Canadian owners of AS Saint-Etienne surprised many people by appointing Eirik Horneland as coach in place of Olivier Dall'Oglio at the end of 2024. Little known to the general public, the former coach of SK Brann was nevertheless followed by several European and MLS clubs, due to his good results and his aggressive style of play. Since his arrival in Ligue 1, the Norwegian has already left his mark on Saint-Etienne training sessions, by extending intense sessions, which he intersperses with small-sided games. "We do this to give the players pleasure because football is a game and we must practice it in training," explains this fan of repetition to Le Progrès. "We try to provide them with some tactical schemes in a fun way and to develop combinations on which we can adapt our aggressive and intense style. Performance is built on a daily basis." In Saint-Etienne, 16th in Ligue 1, there is hope that the Horneland method will be able to keep the club in the top-flight of French football.
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Eirik Horneland, AS Saint-Etienne's new coach, won the 2023 Norwegian Cup with SK Brann / ©Icon Sport