| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Date of birth | (1960-11-05)5 November 1960 (age 65) | ||
| Place of birth | Sion, Switzerland | ||
| Height | 1.80 m (5 ft 11 in) | ||
| Position | Defender | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 1977–1981 | FC Sion | 88 | (7) |
| 1981–1986 | Servette | 139 | (18) |
| 1986–1988 | Neuchâtel Xamax | 63 | (8) |
| 1988–1990 | Saint-Étienne | 70 | (2) |
| 1990–1995 | FC Sion | 173 | (4) |
| 1995–1997 | Grasshoppers | 33 | (1) |
| Total | 566 | (40) | |
| International career | |||
| 1980–1996 | Switzerland | 112 | (5) |
| Managerial career | |||
| 1997–1998 | Grasshoppers U21 | ||
| 1998–2002 | Neuchâtel Xamax | ||
| 2002–2003 | FC Aarau | ||
| 2003–2004 | Grasshoppers | ||
| 2005 | Neuchâtel Xamax | ||
| 2005–2006 | FC Aarau | ||
| 2006 | Lausanne Sports | ||
| 2006–2007 | Olympique Safi | ||
| 2009 | Neuchâtel Xamax | ||
| 2010 | JS Kabylie | ||
| 2011 | Al-Masry | ||
| 2011–2012 | ES Sétif | ||
| 2012 | Ettifaq | ||
| 2013 | MC Alger | ||
| 2015 | MO Béjaïa | ||
| 2015–2016 | ES Sétif | ||
| 2018–2023 | Servette | ||
| * Club domestic league appearances and goals | |||
Alain Geiger (born 5 November 1960) is a Swissfootball manager and a former player. He most recently managedServette FC, leading them to a Champions League qualifying spot and a second-place finish in the championship.
He played mainly as acentre-back despite being only 1.80 m in a career that lasted 20 years, and made 112 appearances at the international level, beingSwitzerland national team's fifth most capped player. His son,Bastien, is also a professional footballer.
Geiger started playing professionally in 1977 withFC Sion. He played just two matches in his first season but by 1978, he was a first-team regular in the side that went on to win theSwiss Cup in 1980.
In 1981, he signed forServette, who were one of Switzerland's most successful teams at the time, and became an invaluable player for both club and country. He helped the club win the 1984 Swiss Cup, defeatingLausanne Sports 1–0after extra time in the final, and theleague title in 1985. An aspiringNeuchâtel Xamax side acquired his services in 1986, and he helped it win the national championship during the only two seasons he played for them,1986–87 and1987–88.
A move toLigue 1 was on the cards next for Geiger, as he signed forSaint-Étienne during the Summer of 1988. He was a big hit and a first-team regular atStade Geoffroy-Guichard, but opted for a return to Switzerland and Sion, in 1990. During his second spell, he saw the form of his life as he becamecaptain for both club and thecountry. He lifted the league trophy for the fourth time in his career as Sion were crowned champions in1991–92.
In 1995, Geiger signed forGrasshoppers, where he finishing his career after a further two seasons, having played 496 Swiss first division matches, with 38 goals.
Geiger made his international debut inSwitzerland's 2–1 defeat toEngland atWembley Stadium, on 19 November 1980, and went on to becapped 112 times and score five goals, between 1980 and 1996.[1]
His last match was also against England, in a 1–1 draw atEuro 1996, on 8 June. Hecaptained his country at both this competition and the1994 FIFA World Cup in the United States, usually being accompanied at centre-back byDominique Herr.[2]
Geiger's firstmanagerial role was spent with the reserves of Grasshopper, in 1997. He did so well there that he was given the reigns at another old side, Neuchâtel Xamax, in July 1998. At Xamax, he helped develop the talents ofTimothée Atouba,Papa Bouba Diop andHenri Camara, and helped the club avoid relegation from the league in his last two seasons.
Geiger quit the club in July 2002 to take over atFC Aarau, but the club were relegated into theSwiss Challenge League at the end of2002–03 and he was given the sack. In December 2003, he was surprisingly named the manager of Grasshopper, but the team fared poorly under him and he was once again fired.
Subsequently, Geiger had short spells managingNeuchâtel Xamax, FC Aarau andLausanne Sports before being given the job atBotola sideOlympique Safi in 2006. He saved the club from relegation from Botola during the 2006–07 season, but resigned at the end of the campaign.
In June 2009, he was replaced byPierre-André Schürmann as head coach of Neuchâtel Xamax.[3]
In January 2010, he was appointed as manager of Algerian clubJS Kabylie.[4] On 14 December 2010, Geiger resigned from his position.[5] During his time with the club, his most notable achievement was leading the team to the semi-finals of the2010 CAF Champions League where they lost to eventual championsTP Mazembe.
On 23 September 2011, Geiger was appointed as manager ofES Sétif.[6] In his first season with the club, he led the team to the league-cup double, winning the2011–12 Algerian Ligue Professionnelle 1 and the2011–12 Algerian Cup.[7]
On 6 June 2012, Geiger became manager of Saudi clubEttifaq FC, signing a two-year contract with the club.[8]
On 30 May 2013, Geiger reached an agreement withMC Alger to take over as new coach, succeedingDjamel Menad.[9]
Taking over Geneva'sServette FC in 2018, the team wins the Swiss Challenge League at the end of his first season, getting promoted to theSuper League.[10] After this. He would go on to lead Servette up the league table and he would go on to get Servette FC 2nd in the table and a champions league qualifier spot during his last game as manager for the club. Alain left stealing the hearts of all members of theSection Grenat and left as one of the most notable managers in recent Servette history.
Sion
Servette
Neuchâtel Xamax
Grasshoppers
ES Sétif
Servette
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