OM supporters thought they saw a hint of blue sky among the dark clouds. However, during its weekly meeting on Wednesday in Paris, the disciplinary committee did not fail to pin Olympique, first by confirming Leonardo Balerdi’s exclusion at the Robert Louis-Dreyfus center, which was considered severe, and giving him a one-match suspension (he will miss the trip to Strasbourg this Sunday), then by closing the areas reserved for Commando Ultra 84 and MTP for celebrating their respective anniversaries too festively, against Nice (2-0). As a result, the entire bottom of the Virage Chevalier Roze and part of the top of the Virage De Peretti will remain empty in eight days for the reception of Angers.
The good news in all this? The absence of Medhi Benatia’s name in the proceedings, unlike Éric Roy, who was given a three-match suspension for criticizing the refereeing last weekend. Pablo Longoria’s sports advisor, who had not minced his words about Benoît Bastien’s decisions on the sidelines of the Olympico, was caught by the National Ethics Council (CNE) which decided to refer the matter to the commission on Monday. The commission did indeed raise the Benatia issue on Wednesday.
But since it is not an expulsion and therefore an automatic suspension, the Olympian manager is summoned for the next meeting of the committee, Wednesday October 2. He received the notification in the last few hours. He still believes he is within his rights, judging that Alexandre Lacazette previously committed a foul on Balerdi (before the second warning) and that the penalty should not have been whistled because of a prior offside.
Will the commission listen to his arguments? Or will it condemn comments deemed hurtful, as it has just done for Roy? What is the risk for Benatia who is simply trying to defend the OM institution? There is no reference scale for sanctions that fall under the CNE referral. But hurtful comments outside of a match are punishable by a 4-match suspension. And the commission can lighten or increase the sanction.
Whatever the outcome of the next meeting, Benatia will maintain this line of conduct and will not hesitate to step up when the situation requires it, according to him.
