Alexander FREI

Alexander Frei signed for Rennes from Servette in Geneva in January 2003. He was the first winter signing of the Dréossi era. The Swiss goalscorer went on to make his mark on the club’s history. After 6 months of adapting to French football, and the coaching methods of Halilhodzic, he finally achieved the breakthrough under the management of Bölöni, who had initially been reluctant to pick him, until he scored goals in two consecutive matches in November, whilst also proving his goalscoring capabilities with his national team. The rest is history, he had a magnificent career at Rennes, scoring 52 goals in total, and his understanding with Monterrubio, who provided him with multiple assists, became a really important factor in his and the club’s success. Apart from three exceptions, every game where the "petit Suisse” scored ended in a Rennes victory. Amongst the many wonderful memories of his time at Rennes were a four-goal salvo in a win against the Marseille of Barthez, a historic brace against Osasuna, and a brace on his farewell appearance against Lille. He was a stubborn and unconventional personality, and he left Brittany in 2006 to live his dream of joining Dortmund in the Bundesliga in a transfer worth 4 Million Euros.