2023-09-19 16:15:09
The fire had been smoldering for several weeks already, it turned into a real inferno this Tuesday, on the eve of two perilous trips for the Marseillais, to Amsterdam in the Europa League on Thursday (9 p.m.) then to the Parc des Princes on Sunday (8:45 p.m.). The summer facade smiles gave way to hangovers and drawn faces in a few weeks, with the highlight, according to L’Équipe, the departure of Marcelino Garcia Toral, inducted at the head of the first team on June 23. It therefore took a dramatic burst of pressure in the small press room of the Robert Louis-Dreyfus center for the situation to settle sportingly.
Long planned – as has been the custom for many months – the meeting between the leaders of the supporters associations and the management does not necessarily go as planned on Monday evening. This was also described as “very hot” by a manager in private. On the platform of the press room, the OM Directorate composed of football director Javier Ribalta, general director Pedro Iriondo, financial and administrative director Stéphane Tessier as well as president Pablo Longoria, receives criticism from the seven groups of supporters via the leader of the South Winners Rachid Zeroual. According to our information, no death threat was made to the 37-year-old Spanish leader.
The climate is tense, the exchange lively, the alleged grievances announced in spades and the departure of the president requested. For long minutes, the floor is given to the supporters who turn on their heels once their speech is finished, without the board being able to respond. In addition to the sluggish start to the season – which is ultimately not the central element of the discussion -, President Longoria’s “cronyism” is in the crosshairs of the faithful, as is the so-called desire to exclude the young Marseillais from the training center, problems with the management of women or positioning Lyonnais or Parisians at the head of the youth section.
Despite his composure, Marcelino made the decision to leave OM and announced it this Tuesday morning to his men, and it is possible that President Longoria, marked by the virulence of the comments made towards him, will also resign. The information was not confirmed by management when contacted. Meetings are underway at the Commanderie. But as it stands, the Provençal institution is going through its first big crisis of the year. According to L’Équipe, Jean-Pierre Papin should act on the bench, in Amsterdam then in Paris.
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