Bernard Lacombe, Lyon football legend, has died

He's experienced almost everything. Lyon football legend Bernard Lacombe died at the age of 72 this Tuesday, June 17, our colleagues at Le Progrès learned. According to Le Parisien, it was the president of the Variété Football Club, Jacques Vendroux, who announced the news, at the request of the family.

Olympique Lyonnais also confirmed the news about X. "All our thoughts go out to his family and loved ones, as well as to the fans of Olympique Lyonnais and football. Farewell, Bernard. You were our legend, the greatest of all."

Born in Villefranche-sur-Saône, Bernard Lacombe played 38 international matches. For the younger generation, he is primarily a special advisor to Lyon president Jean-Michel Aulas in the early 2000s, at a time when OL was sweeping national titles and reaching the top of Europe.

The second highest scorer in the history of the French championship (255 goals in 497 matches) behind the Argentinian Delio Onnis (299 goals), this outstanding finisher embodied better than anyone a style of center forward that was both instinctive and clinical, the archetype of the "box fox" despite his relatively modest height (1.71 m).

This role of complete center forward, Bernard Lacombe, who was born on August 15, 1952 in Villefranche-sur-Saône, put it at the service of the collective during the Euro 1984: no goals scored during the tournament but a decisive performance in the final, when he obtained the free kick allowing Michel Platini to open the scoring against Spain (final victory 2-0). This match was his last in Blue (12 goals in his 38 selections) and the apotheosis of an international career punctuated by two participations in the World Cup (1978, 1982), despite the criticism which sometimes escorted him to the selection.

"In my role as a striker, I may not have given complete satisfaction, but it still seems to me that I sacrificed a lot for the community," he said. "I regret a little the detrimental lack of confidence that we have in center forwards. Yet, who can say that it is not the most thankless position to hold?"

Bernard Lacombe occupied and embodied this position to perfection, in Lyon (1967-1978), briefly in Saint-Etienne (1978-1979) then in Bordeaux, where he ended his playing career (1979-1987).

But it was at Olympique Lyonnais that the bonds were strongest, as Lacombe played every role, from player to manager, in what he described as "his favorite club forever."

Having arrived at OL in 1967, at the age of 15, from CS Fontaines-sur-Saône (Rhône) and playing for the professionals for the first time at the age of 17 on December 7, 1969 against Red Star, scoring a goal (a 2-0 victory), Lacombe left for the first time in 1978. Ten years later, he returned, this time to the staff and management, until 2019, when he took a step back.