This is a new interview this evening with Mehdi Benatia in the premises of La Provence. For this special broadcast of After Foot RMC relocated to Marseille, the OM sports advisor and future sports director did not have his tongue in his pocket to discuss several subjects: the results of last season, the arrival of De Zerbi, the management of the Italian coach, the Paul Pogba rumor and the question of arbitration. An interview that started strong with a shocking declaration. “Last year I spent 6 months where I had zero pleasure. Don’t talk to me about the European Cup semi-final, I don’t even know how we made a European Cup semi-final, it was catastrophic in the game, we didn’t make three passes.. It wasn’t pleasant, the attitude wasn’t good, we didn’t work the way we should work in a club like OM. Things have to be said. » During the summer, the Marseille club signed Roberto De Zerbi from Brighton but worked on another advanced track with Sergio Conceicao because OM needed a coach of character. Benatia explains how he convinced the Italian to come. “I already knew him. We knew each other well. I was in Dubai, I spoke to him about the project. I took a flight to Milan, to explain it to him over breakfast. I knew there was Manchester United. I also knew why he had not agreed to Manchester United. He made sacrifices to come here. I explained the project to him. »
Throughout the interview, Roberto De Zerbi becomes the main subject and the future sporting director of the club explains the character of his coach. “De Zerbi puts pressure on himself because he wants to succeed at OM. This is a basic ultra in Foggia. He sacrificed his life for football. He told me ‘Medhi if I can’t get my team to play the way I want at the Vélodrome, for me it’s a failure. He is ready to die for his players! What happened after the slap against Auxerre? You know, Roberto puts a lot of passion into it, he has a strong character. The first time I spoke to him, I knew what it meant for him to succeed here. I know this project is special to him. This kind of coach looks at the way, the game. He wants his team to play the way he wants. I know him. I know why he said that. He is like that, he is ready to die for his team. » At the same time, he returned to the commando operation for the match against Monaco. “It was beneficial. I saw the reaction of the players. Wake up 5am. We needed to get together again, we needed to mark the occasion. This group was created late. There have been a lot of changes. »
The arrival of Rabiot, the Pogba rumor and arbitration
Place on the pitch with the arrival of Adrien Rabiot and an explanation on his importance in the eyes of the Moroccan and the group. “Adrien, I spoke to him about the fervor, the club and the coach’s relationship with his players. I knew him at Juventus, he loves football, he’s passionate about it. I told him ‘I’m not selling you a dream but this is where we are and where we want to go.’ I need a guy who can come 1 hour 30 minutes before the session starts and stay 1 hour 30 minutes afterwards to talk to the young people. It’s this type of player who will take us to a new level. When I spoke with his mother, I didn’t talk to her about money but about her son’s well-being. He didn’t come here for the money, he had better offers on the table. » Adrien Rabiot who would like to play with Paul Pogba at OM, a call addressed to Longoria and Benatia who remained cautious on the issue despite the attachment shown by all the Marseille leaders. “We have to pay attention to balance, we have very efficient players in the middle. After Paul, he is a real leader, but he is someone who has suffered in recent seasons with physical and personal problems and his sanction. Obviously, you see it on the market, you want to take a look. But I turn the question around: today, concretely, the question is can a club like OM afford to recruit Pogba, if he is not physically ready and if we have to wait six months ? »
Before concluding this interview by talking about refereeing, the Marseille leader spoke of Olympian ambitions. “If we finish second, of course it will be a successful season. People will be proud if we are in the Champions League. I look up first. With the squad we have, we must and we are capable of winning every match. If we want to achieve our goals, we must not take the Coupe de France as secondary if we want to win a title. » The foundations are laid before tackling the annoying subject: arbitration. Asked about the scandal last night during Monaco – Paris with Singo’s involuntary spike on Donnaruma in the face not sanctioned by a red card from Francois Letexier, he did not hide his incomprehension. “I was waiting for him to explain but in the end nothing. I run out of arguments when he explains to me that Harit’s blow on Marquinhos endangers physical integrity and there nothing. I want to remember the positive and I congratulated the president of Lille Olivier Letang for his work and Bruno Génésio who is a very good coach. But Diakité, who scored the equalizing goal, should have been sent off 20/25 minutes before given the number of mistakes he made. When you see that in Italy, the referees who are sensitive you can speak with them whereas here, you cannot, you have to wait 45 minutes in front of the door. We need to establish a dialogue. We will continue to speak and make ourselves heard. »
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To summarize
Guest of RMC’s After Foot for a special program at the Provence premises in Marseille, Mehdi Benatia made resounding declarations about the club. He explains that he took no pleasure in the last six months last season, how he convinced De Zerbi to sign, the arrival of Rabiot, the Pogba rumor, the club’s ambitions and the refereeing.
