History teacher who became a professional coach. Houllier was 73.

L’Equipe has reported that three weeks ago he underwent aortic surgery in Paris, France. Then Houllier was discharged home later.

His serious health problems began in October, 2001, when he was the coach of Liverpool Football Club. On October 13, 2001, before the match vs Leeds United, he started to feel unwell, but doctors managed to save his life. After that incident he was always under the supervision of doctors. Despite this, he trained until June, 2011, when doctors finally banned him from working as a manager. The last club he coached was Aston Villa.

He believed that he could recover. “It’s hard for me, but everything will be fine with me,” said Houllier shortly before being discharged.

Houllier is considered as an innovative trainer who has come a long way. He never played football as a professional footballer, started his working life as a teacher, but was able to become a successful coach.

During his career as a coach he worked in Lens, PSG and Olympique de Marseille in France and in Liverpool and Aston Villa in England. He also played a major role as a part of the coaching staff of the French National Team.