Our former Irish striker, Tony Cascarino, was at the Orange Vélodrome on Sunday to witness the success against AS Monaco. The next day, he was at the RLD center and spoke to our microphone about OM, Roberto De Zerbi and the atmosphere in the stadium.
You were at the stadium for the match against Monaco. What do you think of the Olympian team and their match?
I thought it was a very fair performance because it was a tough match. Monaco was a team whose athletic qualities and youth could be seen. There are a lot of young players who could be dangerous in certain moments, but I think Marseille didn't give up.
It was a difficult match for Marseille on Sunday evening. They gave away, in a way, gave away the goal that Monaco scored, it came from a mistake in the middle of the field. We had to win to be tied on points with Monaco and second behind PSG in order to fight for the Champions League. You have to win matches like that, which was difficult for OM on Sunday evening.
But we can say that the character of the players was exceptional. Marseille probably had the means to win. But it was a close match. It was second against third. What else could we expect?
OM are second now. Do you think that at the end of the season, OM will be able to fight for the top three places?
People like Mason Greenwood have arrived, Pierre-Emile Højbjerg has joined the club, Adrien Rabiot too, they are very experienced players. Will they be in the top three? I find it hard to imagine teams that would be better than OM in the first three places. So, yes, I think the Champions League is accessible for OM. Not having Marseille in the Champions League is always strange for me because I always thought they should be there. You know, it's the only French club to have won the Champions League, which is an incredible honor. So when they are not there… I think a club like OM is missing from European football or the Champions League.
Robert de Zerbi has achieved great things with Brighton, do you think he is capable of doing the same thing with OM?
He's the right person. OM must have this type of manager with a really aggressive style of play to try to score goals. And I think, from what I saw from Roberto De Zerbi at Brighton, he achieved a lot very quickly. It's a big loss for Brighton, but he's the perfect type of manager for Marseille.
Because I think sometimes you can be a fan as a coach or a manager, and he acts a bit like that. It's an honest way to behave. I feel like he's naturally that type of coach, of manager, that he tries to get a little bit more out of every player. And we can see it in Marseille.
A final word on the atmosphere in the stadium?
The best ever. The best in Europe. I attended derbies in England, in Scotland, in Glasgow, at Celtic Rangers, I played in London derbies, I played PSG-OM, Metz-Nancy, all these types of derbies… You know What ? Here, it doesn't have to be PSG for the atmosphere to be great.
Sunday evening I was at the stadium with Trevor Steven. We came together and we talked for hours before the match about OM and the relationship with the supporters. It's extraordinary. We are both passionate about this club because the fans are the lifeblood of the team.
And I think if you can give a team that can also push the fans to succeed, there's no reason why Marseille can't get back to the highest level. It's a club that won the Champions League. Everything is in place at this football club. An extraordinary stadium. Amazing. The atmosphere is always great.
Does this bring back good memories?
Yes of course. I remember my first match against Le Mans very well. I came here after playing for Nancy and I came back to Marseille to play there. It gives you goosebumps to think of Marseille and its atmosphere. There are many big clubs in European football that have a great atmosphere, but some of them are like libraries. They are very, very calm. Marseille is never calm. Never.
