Flashback: Yannick Stopyra

Trained for professional football at the “Lionceaux” from FC Sochaux-Montbéliard, Yannick Stopyra played his first division 1 aged only 16, during a Nimes-Sochaux at the stade des Costières, on October 23rd 1977.

Successful beginnings at the highest level

Basking in the glow of his early premiere, the young player soon became a permanent fixture, alongside Bernard Genghini on the front of Sochaux’ attack. Armed with all the qualities of a modern striker, he scored fourteen goals (10th goal scorer in D1) during the 1979-1980 season, helping Sochaux to its best ever result in the first division. Indeed, that year, the FC Sochaux-Montbeliard reached the second place in the league, only second to Maxime Bossis’ fabulous FC Nantes. The FCSM also finished the season with the most prolific attack in the first divisions (77 goals scored).
Meanwhile, Stopyra was also offered his first cap with France, a month after his nineteenth birthday, on February 27th against Greece. Discretely, he came on the pitch to replace Nantes’ Eric Pécout in the early stages of the second half. He would even score his first goal with “les Bleus” twenty minutes later (66’)! The story was beautiful. In the following season, the club from the Doubs wrote one of the finest pages in its history, only falling to Dutch champions AZ Alkmaar (1-1 and 2-3) in the UEFA Cup’s semi-final. Yannick continued his progression and scored another 31 goals over the following two seasons. After five full seasons at FC Sochaux, “Stop” had become an icon in Sochaux.

A difficult interlude in Rennes

July 1983, Rennes returns to the first division and manages a big coup by signing Yannick Stopyra. Born in Troyes, he then lived several years the town of Redon, Brittany, where he would play his football as a kid, with local club USSC. He especially remembered playing some opening games at the Route de Lorient, and dreamt as a kid to wear the SRFC jersey, one day. His wish was granted, at the beginning of a season in which Rennes showed sheer ambition for their return to the French top-flight.
When Stopyra arrived in the Breton capital, his aura was already well installed in the sport. The man who had led FC Sochaux to become France’s vice-champions in 1980 had already played 176 division 1 matches, scoring 57 goals. He had also received nine international caps with France. Unfortunately for him, he would not receive any further call-up with the national team during his time with the “Rouge et Noir”. Stade Rennes’ 1983-1984 turned to be an absolute fiasco, with the Breton club relegated at the end of a very poor championship season. Rock bottom with 23 points, the team coached by Jean Vincent realised one of the worst seasons in the club’s history. As a symbol, the FC Sochaux, Stopyra’s former club, beat Rennes twice on the same 1-0 score line. President Gérard Dimier’s side was also humiliated against the Nantes rival in the Coupe de France’s Round of 32 (defeated 2-0 in the first leg in Rennes, then 7-0 in the return leg in Nantes).
"Stop”, as he was named by his team-mates, played his last game with the “Rouge et Noir” shirt against Bordeaux, in May 1984 (defeat 2-0). Despite inconsistency in his performances, Stopyra ended the season as the club’s top goal scorer, ahead of Farès Bousdira (8 goals) and Dominique Vésir (5 goals). The Rennes striker would score his only brace during a 4-1 victory against Bastia, for the fourteenth game week, on October 15th, 1983. The troyes-born striker had played 37 league games and scored 9 goals for the Stade Rennais.

- Rennes’ first XI during the 1983/1984 season : Hiard - Samson, Horsmann, Marais, Doaré - Zajaczkowski, Vésir, Bousdira - Morin, Stopyra, Charrier.

The 1986 World Cup as a summit

_ He then left Brittany after a disappointing season, leaving an abundance of regrets behind him. He joined Toulouse in order to put his career back on track. Under Jacques Santini’s guidance, he bounced back in the best of ways after his failure in Rennes. He scored no less than seventeen goals for his first seasons with the “Violets” and sent the Stadium’s crowds into raptures. He also returned to the national team and played another five games (for three goals). The following two seasons would be outstanding at the TFC, with Toulouse finishing fourth, then third in the league, managing the club’s best season in 1986-1987. The blonde centre forward scored goal after goal, slotting them in as pearls on a necklace. In Europe, the TFC also managed a massive performance by eliminating Diego Maradona’s Napoli in the UEFA Cup’s first round (1-0, 0-1, penalties). Yannick was the only goal scorer during the return leg, and remembers it with always the same emotion, even years later: “on the first leg, we had lost 1-0. I remember everything, the feelings, the emotions, the supporters’ chants, the smell and the colours. And the action leading to my goal. There is some confusion in the penalty area, I get the ball, control and hit with my right foot. At that moment, I feel like everything is in slow-motion, Ferrara, the goalkeeper, is diving and the ball rises slowly. We win 1-0 and we qualify on penalty shootouts. I miss mine, just like Maradona”.
In the meantime, he also played in the 1986 World Cup, in Mexico, managing great performances in the competition. A substitute during the first game against Canada, he turned his fortunes at the expense of unfortunate Jean-Pierre Papin, to score two goals in the competition. He surprised and attracted the attention. With the best heading ability in the league, Yannick eventually spent four years in the Occitan basin before joining the Girondins de Bordeaux. The beginning of the end. Despite his eight goals in 1988-1989, Stopyra failed to convince on the Garonne banks. He was eventually transferred to Cannes in August 1989, where he played two seasons. He would play for another two clubs (Metz and Mulhouse) before definitely hanging up his boots.

His career (overview)

1977 – 1983 : FC Sochaux
1983 – 1984 : Stade Rennais
1984 – 1988 : Toulouse FC
1988 – 1989 : Girondins de Bordeaux
1989 – 1991 : AS Cannes
1991 – 1992 : FC Metz
1992 – 1994 : FC Mulhouse
1980 – 1988 : France (33 caps, 11 goals)

Sources :
- Wikipédia
- forum footnostalgie
- « Le Stade rennais, fleuron du football breton » by Claude Loire, Ed. Apogée.

Photos :

- srfc.frenchwill.fr
- forum footnostalgie