Thaindian News

Paris, June 29 (IANS/RIA Novosti) Claudio Ranieri, the recently appointed coach of French Ligue 2 side Monaco, said that he would be releasing former France international midfielder Ludovic Giuly.

Giuly, 35, started his career at Monaco before moving to Barcelona in 2004, where he won the Spanish title and the Champions League within two seasons. He returned to Monaco in August 2011 on a two-year deal, scoring twice in 18 matches since.

“Giuly had a very outstanding career, but it is a new project and I am counting on other players,” Ranieri was quoted as saying.

“I have talked to him and explained my reasons, and, being a professional and a great man, he understood me. He and the club are to reach the compromise (on his departure terms),” Ranieri said.

Giuly’s career record also includes the 2007-2008 season at AS Roma and the following three at Paris Saint-Germain, as well as 17 appearances and three goals for France.

Russian businessman and a long-time Monaco resident Dmitry Rybolovlev, who made his fortune in potash, acquired a two-thirds stake in the club in December.

The takeover deal committed the 45-year-old to invest at least 100 million euros in the club over the next four years.

The former Chelsea, Valencia, Juventus and Roma coach Ranieri signed with Monaco a two-year deal with an option on a 12-month extension in May. His last job was at Inter Milan, where he was fired in March after just four months in charge.

Monaco, the 2004 Champions League runners-up, are one of France’s most successful clubs, with seven league titles and five cups, but recent poor form and financial difficulties culminated in the team’s relegation from Ligue 1 last year for the first time in three decades.

They could have ended up in the third-tier National division if it weren’t for a strong second half to the 2011-12 season, when they climbed out of the relegation zone and into eighth place.

–IANS/RIA Novosti
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