Former France striker Bernard Lacombe dies aged 72
Lacombe began his career with hometown club Lyon and had a brief spell at Saint-Etienne before joining Bordeaux, scoring 255 goals in total in the French top flight in 497 matches.
Only Argentine Delio Onnis (299) has scored more goals in Ligue 1.
Lacombe returned to Lyon after his playing career and served as manager between 1996 and 2000.
"It's with immense sadness that we learned of the death of Bernard Lacombe," the club wrote in a statement.
"Farewell Bernard, you were our legend, the greatest of all."
Lacombe scored 12 goals in 38 appearances for France and started his country's 2-0 win over Spain in the 1984 European Championship final in Paris. — AFP
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
New Straits Times
an hour ago
- New Straits Times
Barrett returns to lead All Blacks against Argentina
CORDOBA: Scott Barrett has returned from injury to lead the All Blacks in the Rugby Championship opener against Argentina as Scott Robertson reverted to his strongest match-day squad for Saturday's test in Cordoba. Barrett missed the last two tests against France with a calf injury but slots back into the second row alongside Netherlands-born lock Fabian Holland. Robertson picked a number of fringe players in the third test against France in Hamilton but has shelved experimentation for the Pumas, omitting all the uncapped players in his squad. That sees Finlay Christie named as back-up scrumhalf on the bench instead of Kyle Preston, while Samipeni Finau will offer loose forward cover rather than untried flanker Simon Parker. "We've had a great week of training in Buenos Aires and the group is ready to go out and perform. Scott and our leaders have led from the front and there's a lot of focus and motivation in the group for the start of the campaign," said Robertson. "We know the Pumas identity is a fast and physical game and we've selected a team that will embrace the occasion. "It's been 30 years since the All Blacks played in Córdoba and we are looking forward to the passion and energy of the home crowd." Robertson has stuck with using mobile lock Tupou Vaa'i at blindside flanker, leaving Ardie Savea at number eight and Du'Plessis Kirifi at openside flanker. Billy Proctor remains at centre behind Jordie Barrett, keeping Rieko Ioane on the wing in Robertson's other tactical tweak from the France series. With injuries to Cameron Roigard and Noah Hotham, Cortez Ratima was named starting scrumhalf, partnering with playmaker Beauden Barrett in the halfbacks. Anton Lienert-Brown offers midfield cover in a strong bench also featuring playmaker Damian McKenzie. The All Blacks will look to continue their domination of the Pumas on their home soil, having never lost a test against them in Argentina. — REUTERS Team: 15-Will Jordan, 14-Sevu Reece, 13-Billy Proctor, 12-Jordie Barrett, 11-Rieko Ioane, 10-Beauden Barrett, 9-Cortez Ratima, 8-Ardie Savea, 7-Du'Plessis Kirifi, 6-Tupou Vaa'i, 5-Fabian Holland, 4-Scott Barrett (capt), 3-Fletcher Newell, 2-Codie Taylor, 1-Ethan de Groot
The Star
2 hours ago
- The Star
Ex-Malaysia goalie shares tips with Johor's hockey talents
Kumar (left) giving pointers to participants during the hockey goalkeeping clinic in Batu Pahat. — Courtesy of Johor Impact Hockey TWENTY pupils from Tamil schools around Johor have been given the rare opportunity to train with former national hockey goalkeeper S. Kumar, in a special initiative. Johor Impact Hockey Club secretary R. Pravin said the initiative, dubbed 'A Legend with a Mission', aimed to provide a platform for young hockey talents to sharpen their goalkeeping skills. 'We want to inspire and nurture young talents to become future national hockey goalkeepers, a position that is very important in the sport. 'Kumar was the perfect fit for the initiative as he is not only a national hockey coach now but also a legend who has played in major international tournaments and earned global recognition for his talents,' he said. Pravin said the youngsters aged nine to 12, from 15 Tamil schools statewide, took part in the first goalkeeping clinic held at SMK Bentara in Batu Pahat. 'We chose to start with Batu Pahat partly because it is centrally located, making it easily accessible from both northern and southern districts of Johor. 'The host school also has its own turf and is one of the few non-sports schools that have consistently produced national and junior athletes every year.' To ensure the students continued honing the skills they learned during the three-hour clinic, teachers and coaches also received training to help sustain the effort, Pravin added. 'We had about 35 teachers and coaches with various levels of expertise taking part in another session after the goalkeeping clinic. 'This allowed them to sharpen their skills, enabling them to continue the lessons and training with pupils once they return to their respective schools.' Pravin said that while the current round only involved Tamil schools, there were plans to expand the initiative to national schools. 'We typically focus on Tamil schools, but we want to go beyond that. 'Our long-term goal is to train more goalkeepers who can one day represent Malaysia at the Olympics. 'As such, we plan to open up future goalkeeping clinics to all schools. 'If we manage to produce one national hockey goalkeeper through this initiative, it will be enough for us to be proud.' Pravin said the club planned to hold the next clinic towards year-end, with a target of some 50 participants. 'We plan to have two sessions in the next clinic, one in the morning and another in the evening on the same day. 'We will keep each session to a small group of 20 to 25 pupils, as per Kumar's request, as he wants to ensure he can give his best and focus on each child,' Pravin added.
New Straits Times
2 hours ago
- New Straits Times
Lyon terminate veteran Matic's contract a year early
LYON: Former Serbian international Nemanja Matic has reached an "amicable" agreement for the early termination of his contract with Lyon, the Ligue 1 club said Thursday. The 37-year-old former Manchester United, Chelsea and Benfica midfielder's contract had been due to run until June 30, 2026. However the club has opted to shed one of its highest paid players as part of its effort to significantly reduce its payroll. Matic arrived in January 2024 from league rivals Rennes and played a key role in helping Lyon move from last at the 2023-2024 winter break to finish sixth, qualifying for the Europa League, and playing in the French Cup final, losing 2-1 to Paris Saint-Germain. He has made a total of 58 appearances for Lyon who open their campaign at Lens on Saturday. Matic earned 48 caps for Serbia between 2008 and 2020.
