Liam Rosenior's Strasbourg revolution has been so impressive ─ his striker is top scorer and another could soon be worth £60million.
The 41-year-old's stellar work developing promising young talents into emerging stars has transformed ex-Chelsea flop Diego Moreira.
Rosenior's side drew 3-3 with PSG - having also beaten the Champions League winners last season
8
Rosenior's side drew 3-3 with PSG - having also beaten the Champions League winners last seasonCredit: AFP
The former EFL boss has continued to go from strength to strength in France since replacing Arsenal legend Patrick Vieira in July 2024.
His appointment came two months after he was sacked by Hull City, having narrowly missed out on the Championship play-offs.
The Tigers' loss has been Strasbourg's gain, after Rosenior oversaw a seventh-place finish, which earned Conference League qualification.
Last season's stars Andrey Santos, Habib Diarra and Dilane Bakwa are all now part of Chelsea, Sunderland, and Nottingham Forest's squads.
read more on Ligue 1
In their absence, Rosenior was laden with 18 new arrivals, with Strasbourg the biggest spenders in France last summer at €127m.
Liverpool's issues have shown that money isn't always the instant recipe for success, but Le Racing have experienced no such downturn.
Strasbourg currently sit third in Ligue 1, two points off the top, having won five of their eight games and drawn 3-3 with PSG.
Rosenior described Joaquín Panichelli's two-goal showing as 'one of the best centre-forward performances I have seen live'.
The 23-year-old, who has flourished in the absence of injured captain and Chelsea-bound Emanuel Emegha, is Ligue 1's top scorer, having been languishing in the Spanish second tier last season.
European football broadcaster Andy Brassell told talkSPORT.com: “I think Rosenior is maybe a little bit modest because really, I think Panichelli is already the benefit of his coaching.
8
Panichelli (right) is currently top of the Ligue 1 scoring charts
8
Panichelli (right) is currently top of the Ligue 1 scoring chartsCredit: AFP
Ligue 1 Top Scorers
Joaquín Panichelli - Strasbourg (7 goals)
Mason Greenwood - Marseille (6 goals)
Ansu Fati - Monaco (5 goals)
“What we have seen since Rosenior has been at Strasbourg is that he is not just an intelligent, engaging guy in front of the cameras.
“He's an exceptional coach and developer of players. And we saw that with Diego Moreira, who was formerly at Chelsea, who has really been transformed under Rosenior.
“He was someone who went out from Chelsea on loan to Lyon, looked absolutely nowhere near ready for top-flight football.
“Then a year later, he goes to Strasbourg, and all of a sudden, he's one of the best wing-backs in the league because he changes his position.
“He's so good, not just with the ball, but without the ball as well. His defensive awareness is fantastic now.
“In terms of scoring and creating, the runs he makes, the awareness that he's got when Strasbourg are out of possession, all of those parts of his games, really, Rosenior has absolutely transformed him. It's amazing.”
Moreira (far right) has been a revelation under Rosenior
8
Moreira (far right) has been a revelation under RoseniorCredit: AFP
Chelsea blow after not including buy-back clause for 'new Marcelo'
Moreira promises to be the first transfer mistake of the Blues' symbiotic relationship with their fellow BlueCo-owned club.
Santos and Djordje Petrovic excelled for Chelsea's sister side last season, with Mamadou Sarr, Mike Penders and Kendry Paez hoping to enjoy similar experiences at Strasbourg this term.
However, Moreira, who has been dubbed the 'new Marcelo', was sold for a paltry £1.7m without a similar type of buy-back clause involved in the deal between the two clubs for Mathis Amougou.
Brassell added that the 21-year-old's success could see Strasbourg vie to challenge Borussia Dortmund as the future elite finishing school.
“Football's a small community, people talk, and people who have been coached by Rosenior are going to go to their mates and their mates, [and say] 'Mate, this guy has changed my game. This guy has really helped me develop and go on to the next level'”, he added.
He grabbed a goal and an assist in the 3-3 draw with PSG
8
He grabbed a goal and an assist in the 3-3 draw with PSG
Moreira made just one competitive appearance for Chelsea
8
Moreira made just one competitive appearance for ChelseaCredit: Getty
“Now, I think you've seen that with Dilane Bakwa, who got his big move to Nottingham Forest as well.
“You've seen what happened with Andre Santos, and he's now considered ready to start Premier League games - not all of them, but he's ready to start Premier League games in a Chelsea squad, which is particularly stacked in midfield.
“So everything that Rosenior has done since he's been there is so, so impressive.”
Brassell continued: “Strasbourg have got a great opportunity not just to make the Champions League this year, but maybe to make the Champions League in subsequent years. So I think that makes them an incredibly attractive prospect to young players.
“Now, we've spoken at various other times, are Dortmund a genuine developer, for example, of young players still? Are Monaco still a club where you feel, as a young player, you can develop?
“If you think of the competition there is for players in their late teens or 2021, for those teams that are not quite elite level teams who say, well, if you come to us for a couple of years, we're your finishing school to reach elite football.
Emegha will join Chelsea next summer
8
Emegha will join Chelsea next summerCredit: Getty
Rosenior's Strasbourg project shows no signs of slowing down
8
Rosenior's Strasbourg project shows no signs of slowing downCredit: AFP
“You come and play for us for a couple of years, and then you go to Chelsea or you go to Real Madrid or you go to Man City or Barcelona or Liverpool or wherever else.
“I think if you're Strasbourg, you're probably in quite a good position, particularly while Rosenior's the coach, to say, 'Come to us, we'll make you into that guy'.
Read More on talkSPORT
“Strasbourg, with the resource they've got, with the setup they've got, with the current condition of French football financially, I think they've got a unique opportunity to carve themselves a little niche here, and to maybe even go ahead of Monaco and say, this is the place as a top young player you should be.
“Obviously, over time, that makes them self-sufficient as well. If they get in Diego Moreira for cents on the dollar, and then all of a sudden they can sell him a couple of years down the line for 40, 50, 60 million, whatever. I mean, that's some model, right?”