Third in Ligue 1 and strong 29 points after 17 contested days, the Olympique de Marseille, which awaits the verdict of the match stopped against OL, presents a very respectable balance sheet. However, despite the many summer recruits, the Marseille game is clearly not unanimous and the choices made by Jorge Sampaoli are starting to be discussed. Symbol of this irregularity, OM are already eliminated from the Europa League and will have to fight next Thursday against Lokomotiv Moscow to secure their place in the Europa League Conference. In an interview published by The team, this Monday evening, Marseille president Pablo Longoria, who also spoke at length on the issue of security in the stadiums, therefore returned to the start of the season for his team.
“We are a team built to have control of the game, not to play transition football. Right now, it’s true, we lack offensive efficiency. If we analyze all the data, we see that in many matches, we could have scored more goals. There is a balance to be struck between our offensive production and defensive security. We have to keep control of the game and the matches. Because we are not a team built to play physical in a Championship which is, him ”. So trying in a first to explain the certain drop in OM’s speed in recent weeks, the Olympian boss then spoke, with a lot of frankness, on things to improve during the winter transfer window which will soon open its doors. Recalling above all that OM should sell before buying, Longoria especially pointed to the lack of experience of a very young Marseille squad.
Pablo Longoria points to the lack of leadership at OM!
“By January, I have to find economic resources to improve the workforce, with the assets I have on the team. It can mean selling players and using the money wisely. The sale of a player can make it possible to strengthen a team, in the end, to erase its handicaps. I consider that we have already improved a lot of things last summer, but there is still work. The team is young, it can lack leadership in different positions on some important matches. The leadership, the management of these meetings, it comes with the number of matches played at high level. We took a general strategic turn to rejuvenate the workforce, the average age of the team has dropped dramatically. But you cannot have the same level of requirement for a very young workforce. I am the first to be aware of it. ”
Assuring then that Jorge Sampaoli “Adhered from day one to this project of working with young players”, Pablo Longoria however recalled that this youth and “This ardor needed to be channeled”. What establish a first real trend for the winter transfer window: “Talking about individual positions no longer really makes sense. We have a very clear strategy, a workforce of 21 versatile players. We are rather looking for different profiles for a few months in this winter transfer window. In the event of the exit of different players, we want to have spare possibilities “. To conclude and without any tongue in cheek, the 35-year-old Spaniard then returned to the main hot issues of the Olympian squad, starting with the extension of Boubacar Kamara. Refusing for the time being to extend and announced, as we revealed to you, in the sights of Bayern Munich or FC Barcelona, the Marseille midfielder is currently a real problem for OM leaders but for Pablo Longoria, the possibility of a positive outcome remains relevant, provided that everyone put his own …
“Boubacar Kamara? Everyone must do their part ”
“The talks have been open for a long time, they have intensified lately. It’s an important asset for the club, I hope it will continue. But there is not only one party in negotiations, it must be the general will. Football is changing. Twenty years ago, clubs had extraordinary power over players, too much. In recent years, we have moved into a football where the players have taken a lot of power. We came up with different formulas to find a pattern where everyone would thrive and feel ready to continue. Saying that you have offered a maximum in negotiation is not respectful with the other party. There is a match, the ball is in the middle of the field, everyone must play their part ”.
Extended in the spring and invited to leave on Friday by Sampaoli, Jordan Amavi also remains a thorny issue on the side of the Canebière. Asked about this, Pablo Longoria, without denigrating the Marseille side, however more or less kicked in touch, recalling that all OM players had to adapt to the new requirements of the coach: “He didn’t have much playing time in the second half of last season. A new system, new ideas were put in place from July. It is up to all the players to adapt to this new situation on a daily basis. Sometimes it is done easily, sometimes with difficulty. We are more on a question of profile. The manager defined Amavi as a pure full-back, while Luan Peres has a hybrid position between center-back and full-back. Everyone knows Jordan’s real level, he has a track record ”.
Finally, and certainly to the delight of Marseille supporters, Pablo Longoria was very confident about the future of Mattéo Guendouzi, Cengiz Ünder and Pau Lopez, considering these purchasing options as “Practically automatic”. Indeed, for the first two cities, very efficient under the Olympian jersey, this is “Linked to maintenance” club while for the last Spanish rampart of OM, the option will be automatically lifted after “20 matches played”. Misformed in recent weeks, Arkadiusz Milik also remains a question mark, but if Pablo Longoria asks himself the question: “How to find the true level of Milik?” His future in Marseille does not seem to frighten him either:“We have always spoken of Operation Milik as a complicated operation. But it is a player who, in the end, will be the property of OM ”. The trend is given and the winter transfer window of OM promises to be agitated.