Medhi Benatia, the sporting director of OM, rants against the refereeing of Clément Turpin after his expulsion during the Coupe de France match against Lille. He denounces the relentlessness against him and demands the images…
Anger is brewing on the side of Olympique de Marseille after the elimination in the round of 16 of the Coupe de France against Lille (1-1, 3-4 tab). At the heart of the tensions, the expulsion of Marseille sports director Medhi Benatia by referee Clément Turpin just after Luis Henrique’s equalizer in the 90th + 6. A red card that goes badly for the former Juventus player.
“Find me the images, there is a relentlessness”
Asked at the microphone of beIN Sports after the meeting, Medhi Benatia did not hide his incomprehension and his frustration. “I want you to find the images for me. What I just experienced this evening is very serious,” he said straight away, before pointing out the behavior of the man in black:
“We score, I go to the fourth referee to ask him to tell the referee that there was a penalty. Mr. Turpin comes from 50 meters away, he doesn’t know what’s happening and he gives me a red card. There is a relentlessness against me. »
A “very serious” decision for Benatia
Visibly very upset, Medhi Benatia also recalled other disputed facts of play during previous meetings, believing that he was receiving special treatment from the refereeing body:
“In Rennes we had a penalty ruled out and we said nothing. I understood that I have no right to speak, no right to work, I have no right to do anything. There are 25 people around the 4th referee and when I speak, Mr. Turpin goes 50 meters to give me a red. »
OM eliminated despite “a great match”
Beyond this controversy, the Olympian sports director still wanted to salute the performance of his team, defeated on penalties by “invincible” Lille this season:
“We had a great match, there is something to be proud of in terms of the performance and the content shown. We conceded a goal against the flow of the match, we had the courage and the desire to come back together. In terms of penalties, it was a lottery that did not favor us. »
Medhi Benatia is now waiting to be able to view the images of her altercation with the refereeing body. A sequence which could generate a lot more ink in the coming days and fuel the debate on the tense relations between the players in French football and the men in black.
