It was a scene of chaos that Jake O’Brien, defender of Olympique Lyonnais, described about the pre-match between OM and OL, in an interview given to The Athletic.
Sunday evening, the Lyonnais bus was indeed stoned on the way leading the team to the Vélodrome. Coach Fabio Grosso and his assistant Raffaele Longo were notably injured during the events.
“Most of us had our headphones on, listening to music, then all of a sudden there was a huge bangsays the 22-year-old Irishman. At first I had no idea what it was because my music was loud, but then they were throwing rocks and stuff through the windows. »
“We didn’t know the coach had been injured”
O’Brien then explains that he observed what was happening outside the bus to understand the situation. “We looked up and it was coming through every window. There were hundreds of Marseille supporters and things were fired through the windows. Some of them wore balaclavas. There wasn’t much the police escorting us could do. They were in front (the bus) and they came from the side. It was just a case of covering our heads until we got to the stadium. »
Criticized like his partners for having carried out reconnaissance of the pitch once he arrived at the stadium, as if nothing had happened, the player, who arrived at OL this summer, confirms that the players wanted to play the match because they did not know that Fabio Grosso had been injured.
“On the bus, we didn’t know that the coaches had been injured, because we were all lying downhe says. We couldn’t wait to get out on the pitch and show them what we’re made of. »
READ ALSO. “It could have been a tragedy”: Fabio Grosso speaks after the incidents
For the moment, several investigations have been opened by the Marseille prosecutor, two against OM for the incidents on the Lyon bus and on a group of supporters and one against OL after comments racists from certain supporters in the stands.