Lucien Muller-Schmidt (born 3 September 1934) is a French former

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kick (football), kicking a football (ball), ball to score a goal (sports), goal. Unqualified, football (word), the word ''football'' generally means the form of football t ...

player and

manager Management (or managing) is the administration of organizations, whether businesses, nonprofit organizations, or a government bodies through business administration, nonprofit management, or the political science sub-field of public administra ...

who played as a

midfielder In the sport of association football, a midfielder takes an Glossary of association football terms#O, outfield position primarily in the middle of the pitch. Midfielders may play an exclusively defensive role, breaking up attacks, and are in t ...

. He made no appearances in the

France national team France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

at the

FIFA World Cup 1966 The 1966 FIFA World Cup was the eighth FIFA World Cup, a quadrennial football tournament for men's senior national teams. It was played in England from 11 to 30 July 1966. England defeated West Germany 4–2 in the final to win their first ever ...

Career

Born in

Bischwiller Bischwiller (; ; ) is a commune in the Bas-Rhin department in Grand Est in northeastern France, just west of the river Moder. Geography The city is southeast of Haguenau, west-northwest of the German border and the Rhine (Rhin), and lies ...

, Muller started out in

Alsace Alsace (, ; ) is a cultural region and a territorial collectivity in the Grand Est administrative region of northeastern France, on the west bank of the upper Rhine, next to Germany and Switzerland. In January 2021, it had a population of 1,9 ...

, his native region, and then made a name for himself with the

Stade de Reims Stade de Reims () is a French professional football club based in Reims. The club was formed in 1931 and plays in Ligue 2, the second tier of football in France. Reims plays home matches at the Stade Auguste Delaune. Reims is one of the mo ...

, that he was twice crowned French champion. He then moved to

Real Madrid Real Madrid Club de Fútbol (), commonly referred to as Real Madrid, is a Spanish professional Football club (association football), football club based in Madrid. The club competes in La Liga, th ...

, where he appeared in the European Cup final in 1964; they won league three times. He would move to

FC Barcelona Futbol Club Barcelona (), commonly known as FC Barcelona and colloquially as Barça (), is a professional Football club (association football), football club based in Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain, that competes in La Liga, the top flight of ...

. Although he was touted as the successor to

Raymond Kopa Raymond Kopa (né Kopaszewski; 13 October 1931 – 3 March 2017) was a French professional footballer, integral to the France national team of the 1950s. At club level he was part of the legendary Real Madrid team of the 1950s, winning three Eu ...

, his performances in the French kit never matched his club performances. He was nevertheless part of the French team that participated in the

1966 FIFA World Cup The 1966 FIFA World Cup was the eighth FIFA World Cup, a quadrennial Association football, football tournament for men's senior national teams. It was played in England from 11 to 30 July 1966. England defeated West Germany 4–2 in the 1966 FI ...

. He returned to Reims where he ended his career. He briefly returned to Barcelona as a coach in the late 1970s, leading the club to the European Cup Winners' Cup Final, before being replaced by Joaquim Rifé. He would later train

AS Monaco Association Sportive de Monaco Football Club, commonly referred to as AS Monaco (), is a professional football club based in Fontvieille, Monaco. Although not in France, they are a member of the French Football Federation (FFF) and currently ...

RCD Mallorca Real Club Deportivo Mallorca, Sociedad Anónima Deportiva, S.A.D. (, , ''Royal Sporting Club Mallorca''), commonly known as Real Mallorca or RCD Mallorca, is a Spanish professional association football, football club based in Palma de Mallorca, ...

and

CD Castellón Club Deportivo Castellón, S.A.D. is a professional List of football clubs in Spain, Spanish football team based in Castellón de la Plana, in the Valencian Community. Founded on 20 July 1922, it currently plays in , holding home games at ''Nou E ...

External links

Racing Club de Strasbourg profile

FFF profile
* * 1934 births Living people People from Bischwiller French people of German descent Footballers from Bas-Rhin French men's footballers Men's association football midfielders Ligue 1 players RC Strasbourg Alsace players Toulouse FC players Stade de Reims players La Liga players Real Madrid CF players FC Barcelona players France men's international footballers 1960 European Nations' Cup players 1966 FIFA World Cup players French football managers Burgos CF (1936) managers AS Monaco FC managers La Liga managers CD Castellón managers Real Zaragoza managers FC Barcelona managers RCD Mallorca managers French expatriate men's footballers French expatriate football managers French expatriate sportspeople in Spain Expatriate men's footballers in Spain Expatriate football managers in Spain Expatriate football managers in Monaco French expatriate sportspeople in Monaco 20th-century French sportsmen {{france-footy-midfielder-1930s-stub