Olympique de Marseille fights back. Held in check by Strasbourg last weekend (1-1), the Marseille club felt wronged by the arbitration of Bastien Dechepy, deploring several contentious situations to its disadvantage. Its president, Pablo Longoria, then took the microphone of DAZN to denounce “a scandal” and complain about an accumulation of injustices against his team. On the set of “L'Equipe du soir”, the show on the L'Équipe channel, the columnists returned to this muscular intervention, and one of them, Sébastien Tarrago, was particularly virulent towards the Olympian leader. “When you manage a club with a budget of 500 or 600 million euros, even if you are a young president, you have the right to behave in ways that are not those of a retarded teenager.” he said at the end of his argument.
“No apology can erase the violence of his words“
OM became aware of this sequence which had gone viral on social networks, and decided to take legal action against the author of these words. “In line with its latest positions, Olympique de Marseille no longer tolerates any offensive comments against its club, its managers, its employees or its supporters. The terms used by Sébastien Tarrago in a television sports program, Sunday January 20, are once again unacceptable. can we read in the press release published on the club's official website. It is added: “No apology can erase the violence of his words, particularly at a time when mental health is being made a Great National Cause. This is why Olympique de Marseille, through criminal action, will seek the conviction of Sébastien Tarrago as well as damages.
For his part, the journalist from the L'Équipe channel, victim of insults and threats on the networks, admitted to having gone too far. He made his mea culpa in a message published on X: “Yesterday, I wanted to express the idea that the attitude of Marseille's leaders lacked loftiness and that they were developing infantile thinking. In the end, it was me who got bogged down. My expression was awkward and unwelcome. My apologies to anyone this may have offended.”
-A precedent with RTL and Carine Galli
A few days ago, it was RTL and “On refait le match” which found themselves in the sights of the Olympian management after criticism from journalist Carine Galli against the management of the club. “This is a man who chose someone sulphurous as his football director. This is a man who is president of OM and a club legend explains that he is threatened as part of his work. He is not the best president of OM, far from it“, declared the short-lived candidate of “The Island” on M6, speaking of Pablo Longoria. She also denounced the “detestable practices” of the Marseille club. “Regretting that Marseille is still associated with nauseating and false prejudices, Olympique de Marseille condemns these slanderous accusations”reacted the institution chaired by Pablo Longoria, affirming “than a defamation complaint“had been”filed“.
