French footballer
Julien Brellier
(born 10 January 1982, in
Echirolles
, Isere) is a French
footballer
. A
midfielder
, he currently plays amateur football for AC Seyssinet. His former clubs include
Hearts
and
Norwich City
.
Playing career
[
edit
]
Early career
[
edit
]
Brellier started his career at French club
Montpellier
and was recruited by Italian giants
Internazionale
in 2000. He made a limited number of appearances with Inter and was loaned out to
Lecco
and
Legnano
before joining
Venezia
, initially under a co-ownership agreement. He played part of the 2004?05 season with
Salernitana
and was released in June 2005 due to the bankrupt of Venezia.
Heart of Midlothian
[
edit
]
Brellier impressed manager
George Burley
and was signed on a two-year deal by the
Edinburgh
side in August.
[2]
Brellier quickly became a firm favourite with the Hearts fans: his unspectacular, diligent covering role in midfield allowing fellow midfielders
Paul Hartley
and
Rudi Skacel
greater attacking freedom, from which they scored a combined total of 30 league goals during the
2005?06 season
. By the latter part of that season a giant French flag, with the words "Le Juge" emblazoned across it, became a regular spectacle at Hearts' home stadium
Tynecastle
, while the crowd took to singing his name to the tune of
Verdi
's
La donna e mobile
.
Despite Brellier being one of the most popular players at Tynecastle, it was frequently reported in the media that Hearts' owner
Vladimir Romanov
did not share the supporters' high opinion of him.
[3]
After the signing of
Bruno Aguiar
, Brellier was used more often as a substitute and, in an April 2006 interview, he suggested he was unhappy with the treatment he had received.
[4]
However, in June 2006 it was confirmed that Brellier had agreed to extend his stay with Hearts until 2007.
[5]
He appeared as a substitute as Hearts won the
2006 Scottish Cup final
.
The
2006?07 season
continued in a similar vein to the previous year for Brellier, with the Frenchman starting less than half of Hearts' games. His cause was not helped by a controversial sending-off in the Maroons
Champions League
qualifying round defeat to
AEK Athens
[6]
Following much speculation during the season, in May 2007 it was confirmed that he would leave Hearts, after rejecting a final contract offer.
[7]
Post-Hearts career
[
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]
On 14 June, Brellier's agent, the brother of former Manchester United star Eric Cantona, confirmed that the player was in talks over a possible move to
Rangers
. However, he joined
Norwich
on 3 July, signing a two-year deal.
[8]
Brellier was sent off for the first time in his Norwich career on 22 September 2007 in a 2?0 defeat at
Wolves
. He was unable to establish himself in the first team under new manager
Glenn Roeder
and the club terminated his contract on 11 January 2008.
[9]
He subsequently signed for
FC Sion
.
[10]
In March 2010, Brellier severed ties with FC Sion and began training with
Ligue 1
side
Grenoble
in order to maintain his fitness as he searched for a new club.
[11]
In October 2010 Brellier decided to retire from professional football and joined amateur side AC Seyssinet, who play in the
7th tier of French football
.
Honours
[
edit
]
- Heart of Midlothian
References
[
edit
]
- ^
"Julien Brellier"
.
Barry Hugman's Footballers
. Retrieved
17 April
2017
.
- ^
Hearts move to capture Brellier
, BBC Sport, 2 August 2005.
- ^
Pulling at Hearts' strings
, BBC Sport, 24 October 2005.
- ^
Brellier unhappy over treatment
, BBC Sport, 30 April 2006.
- ^
Vlad wants French ace Brel to extend stay
,
Scotsman.com Sport
, 27 June 2006.
- ^
AEK Athens 3?0 Hearts
,
BBC Sport
, 23 August 2006.
- ^
Brellier rejects new Hearts offer
,
BBC Sport
, 17 May 2007.
- ^
Brellier signs for Norwich
Archived
5 July 2007 at the
Wayback Machine
,
Norwich City official site
, 3 July 2007.
- ^
The Pink'un
Archived
16 January 2008 at the
Wayback Machine
- ^
FC Sion : Signature de Brellier ? La Une ? Mercato 365 ? Tous sur le mercato
- ^
Ex-Hearts star Brellier gives his verdict on the derby
Scotsman.com, 17 March 2010. Retrieved 11 November 2010
External links
[
edit
]