UEFA.com
Aug 2 2004

Casoni to lead Armenia
Monday, 2 August 2004
Former France defender Bernard Casoni has been named as the new coach
of Armenia and will lead the team during their 2006 FIFA World Cup
qualifying campaign.

Ambitious for future
The 42-year-old will have a tough task as Armenia are in Group 1
alongside the Czech Republic, Netherlands, Romania, Finland, Andorra
and F.Y.R. Macedonia, with their opening match a trip to the latter
nation on 18 August. While a place in Germany in two years may not be
a realistic goal, Casoni said: “I’ll help Armenian football to grow.”

Pardo to assist
Bernard Pardo, another former international, will assist Casoni, who
was capped 30 times by Les Bleus. During his playing days, Casoni won
the UEFA Champions League with Olympique de Marseille in 1993 and
went on to coach the side between 1999 and 2000. He has also worked
in Tunisia with Etoile Sportive du Sahel and his hometown club AS
Cannes.