To replace Patrick Arlettaz, who will no longer be USAP coach next season, Perpignan would have thought of Vern Cotter, according to Midi Olympique. Discussions are even underway to try to attract the 61-year-old New Zealand manager.
Cotter on his way to Catalonia? Since last month, Vern Cotter (61) is no longer the coach of Fiji, a position he has held since 2020. The resignation of the New Zealand coach (“for personal reasons”) did not fall into deaf ear. It landed on the other hand in that of the leaders of Perpignan, in search of a successor to Patrick Arlettaz, still in place at present but who made it known last February that he would not extend the adventure to the ‘USAP.
Two pieces of information fell almost at the same time to the day which led Perpignan to think that the best solution for the future was perhaps to entrust the team to Cotter. Noon Olympic confirms to us this weekend that the former coach of Clermont and Montpellier would appear at the top of the USAP priority list to replace Arlettaz. Better: always according to the same source, discussions would have even been started, and would have moreover “well advanced”.
Several details to settle?
To the point of being able to say today that the Catalan club may not be very far from being able to announce the arrival of Cotter for next season. “There would still be several contractual details to be worked out to reach a definitive agreement”write our colleagues about the forcing of Perpignan for the one who led Scotland to the quarter-finals of the World Cup in 2015, whose impressive CV (he also won the European Challenge and was champion of France with Clermont) would have made the difference compared to those of Pierre-Henry Broncan or Julien Laïrle, who would also appear on the list of potential managers and would even have been received by the Catalan leaders.
According to Noon Olympic, the president of the USAP François Rivière wanted to finalize the chapter of the new coach by the end of April. He should be on time, and possibly afford a trainer of international renown and in great demand on the market. Perhaps a big blow in perspective for the current 12th in the ranking.
