Axel Allag, Media365: published on Wednesday January 15, 2025 at 8:30 a.m.
The OM football director, expelled by Clément Turpin before the penalty shootout during the elimination of the Marseille club in the round of 16 of the Coupe de France against Lille on Tuesday (1-1; 3 penalties to 4) once again lost his temper against the arbitration.
This is not the first time that Mehdi Benatia has criticized the refereeing, because he had already exploded at the end of September against Benoît Bastien at half-time and at the end of OL-OM (2-3), but Tuesday evening, the leader of the Marseille club expressed his thoughts, just a few minutes after the painful elimination of OM against LOSC in the round of 16 of the Coupe de France. Sent off by Clément Turpin a few seconds after Luis Henrique's equalizing goal in the 95th minute, Benatia then spoke at the microphone of beIN Sports, after having notably praised the “very good match” produced by OM. “This evening (Tuesday, editor's note), what I have just experienced is serious. We score, I go to see the fourth referee (Jérémy Stinat) to tell him that there was a penalty (on Jonathan Rowe). passing, I remove the coach, my coach who is arguing with Olivier Létang There are a lot of people at that time, around fifteen people coming from 50m away, he even knows. no, he comes there and 'bam' red I come back to see the fourth referee who tells me that I threatened him with the finger”, he complained.
“He tells me that I threatened him with my finger”
Asking the beIN Sports teams to find the images of the incident, Mehdi Benatia then expressed his frustration, which he could not contain. “I know that I do not have the right to speak, I understand that very well. I do not have the right to work, I know that very well. (…) When we speak, we do not I didn't say anything about the penalty but I was going to say something bad to the referee. 'we scored. You have to be an imbecile. referee says to me 'you threatened me with the finger'. Is that a red card? There is no VAR but there is no VAR, I understand. I simply said at the time of Luis Henrique's goal: 'tell him now that it's over that there was a penalty' and he told me that I threatened him with my finger. not allowed to speak… Why do I am I not allowed to speak? Why are there 25 people around and when I speak, Mr. Turpin walks 50 meters and gives me the red face? Don't I have the right to defend my team?”
“How can we ensure that Olympique de Marseille is treated correctly?”
Experiencing this situation as an injustice, he also recalled the post-Olympico period, when “all the leaders of France spoke” and only he was summoned, receiving a six-match suspension (three of which were suspended) “for nothing” . Claiming to have never experienced what he went through on Tuesday evening at the Orange Vélodrome, Mehdi Benatia asked himself what he could do, resigned. “I'm not going to see anyone, if it's to take 25 games. It's frustrating, I just want to work. I don't understand. When you don't say anything it doesn't work, when you say something it doesn't work either. Maybe I should resign and find another job. What did I do to get this treatment (…) How can I get Marseille to win? of Marseille, be treated correctly?
