While Jonathan Rowe and Adrien Rabiot were placed on the transfer list of OM after their dressing room change on Friday, Pablo Longoria broke his silence. The president of the Marseille Club has given his explanation to AFP.
Pablo Longoria speaks out about the affair that the whole of Marseille has shaken. In an interview with AFP, the OM -President discusses the Sidelining of Jonathan Rowe and Adrien Rabiot, who were placed on the transfer list at the end of the transfer window after their change to the dressing room.
Marseille's manager describes it as “an event of extreme violence, something unknown.” “We had to make a decision after an event that exceeded the acceptable boundaries in a football club, such as in every organization,” added Pablo Longoria, which described it as “a decision protecting the institution, which protects the season.”
“We've never seen anything like that in a dressing room.”
The incident took place in the dressing room of Roazhon Park on Friday evening, after the Ligue 1 seasonal defeat against Rennes (1-0). Several players have raised their voice after these poor performance with 11 players against 10 players. Jonathan Rowe became the target of the senior players. Tensions continued to rise, which led to a collision between the English striker and Adrien Rabiot.
“I was not in the dressing room. But what I can say is that everything I heard of the staff, both sporty and non-sport, was that it was something unheard of, violent, very aggressive and that it went beyond all limits,” the Spanish manager was on. “Roberto de Zerbi has been coaching for 13 years, Medhi Benatia has been on top football since his 22 and I started in professional football 20 years ago. I think we have enough experience to say that we have never seen anything like this in a dressing room.”
“Do you think, the president of Olympique de Marseille, I am happy to find myself in these situations with one of the most successful players of last season, whom I held as an example? To be honest, as a club we have the situation. We are the victim of a situation, a fight without limits, who is completely unmarried in the world of football,” said Pablo Longoria.