Former Players : Chapuis on trial at Arles-Avignon

Without a team since more than a year Cyril Chapuis could be on his way back to Ligue 1. Looking for a striker, Arles-Avignon has indeed invited the former French U21 international to a one-week trial. At the end of these tests, Arles Manager Michel Estevan will decide whether he wants to keep the player in his squad.

In June 2000, Chapuis arrived in Rennes from Niort on Paul Le Guen’s recommendation. The Breton coach liked the qualities of the promising young player. While he was expected to be a second choice behind players such as Luis Fabiano, Severino Lucas or Mario Turdo, he soon gained his place in the starting line-up. Able to get the ball deep, good with his back to the goal, Chapuis surprised for his first Division 1 season. The next year however, the Rennes striker did not manage to get Christian Gourcuff’s nod, and was transferred to Marseille in January 2002 for a bit more than 5 Million Euros.

After three years in Marseille, Chapuis’s career went down continuously, and the player was limited to second zone teams (Strasbourg, Ajaccio, Grenoble, Metz). In Lorraine, his contract wasn’t extended, and the player is now without a club since June 2009. With Rennes, he scored 13 goals for 46 games in the top flight.