The worst performance since the start of the season, an expulsion, few chances or almost and an ultra logical defeat in Lille (2-0). While OM hoped to honor Bernard Tapie on the day of his death, things did not quite go as planned. The only real tribute paid to the emblematic former president of Marseille will have taken place ten minutes before kick-off. When a portrait of Tapie was shown on the giant screen of the Pierre Mauroy stadium, heavy applause from the spectators present at the stadium covered the few whistles heard.
Conversely, no ovation came to greet the performance of the Marseille players, who all wore a black armband, on the lawn. And for once, nothing to do with any emotion related to the death of the former leader. “All the players had heard the news but we did not talk about it, we just mentioned the game plan we had to put in place,” admitted Jorge Sampaoli, the Marseille coach. Except that we had trouble seeing what OM’s game plan was.
The worst game of the season
Dominated in all areas by more biting Northerners, the Olympians hardly existed at the Pierre Mauroy stadium where they undoubtedly played their worst game of the season.
“We did not manage to have control of the game. We lost too many balls and Lille is a team that plays very well against and has a very fast attacking game. The match went in the direction where Lille wanted to go. You have to work a lot to be able to dominate more. Today, the team did not understand which match it had to play ”, continues a lucid Argentinian coach who prefers not to hide behind the absence of Dimitri Payet, injured. “Dimitri was instrumental in building the game and finishing the games he played so his absence is difficult to replace, but that’s no excuse,” Sampaoli admitted.
Second loss in a row in Ligue 1
PSG scratching hair at the start of the season, Marseille is already coming down from its pedestal. Already beaten last week at the Vélodrome by Lens (2-3), OM have just recorded a second defeat in a row in the league. In order not (already) to fall into line, Marseille will have to recover after the international break. It will be Sunday, October 17 at home against Lorient, the day the Vélodrome should pay an XXL tribute to Bernard Tapie. It will not be complicated to do better than the one delivered to Lille by OM on Sunday night.