Olympique de Marseille officially announced this on Wednesday the Spaniard Marcelino García Toral He stops being the club’s coach.
The tension that the French team experienced “Does not allow Marcelino and his coaching staff to carry out the tasks for which they were hired under good conditions.”the club announced in a statement.
Marcelino arrived in Marseille on June 23 to replace Croatian Igor Tudon, who did not want to lead the team after one season and only managed seven official matches, failing to qualify for the Champions League and only winning two times five league games.
The Spanish coach’s departure was then taken for granted The coach will announce this to some players and club staff this Tuesday, after not taking part this Wednesday in the Marseille expedition that traveled to Amsterdam to play against Ajax in the first game of the Europa League on Thursday.
The club pointed out that Marcelino’s departure, which does not specify whether it is a resignation or a dismissal, comes after the violent meeting that the club’s management, with the president Pablo Longoria at the helm, held last Monday with representatives of the The most important parties were held by fan associations of the club with the largest fan base in France.
In the same They called for the resignation of Longoria, Marcelino’s great supporterwho, faced with this pressure, decided to temporarily step down from the position.
“The club as a whole is extremely disappointed to have to face the departure of a coach and a coaching staff (…) for non-sporting reasons,” Marseille added.
Olympique, the only French club to have won a Champions League (1993), is in full force after the 0-0 draw in front of its fans last Sunday against Toulouse, in the middle of a mediocre game that sparked a major Champions League battle stands. and increased the divorce with the crowd.
Marcelino was a personal bet from Longoria, with whom he had a long friendship. Both already had a club together in Valencia. Fans accuse the president of pandering to his friends and not treating historical figures like Steve Mandanda or Dimitri Payet well.
The French media point out that the club’s sporting director, also Spaniard Javier Ribalta, preferred a different, more modern coaching profile.
The tension has turned the club into a powder keg at a key moment of the season, ahead of its first Europa League clash and a few days before the “classic” against Paris Saint-Germain next Sunday at the Parc des Princes.
Olympique will face these two events in the midst of a crisis. Jacques Abardadonado, historic footballer of the club and member of Marcelino’s coaching staff, will sit on Johan Cruyff’s bench in Amsterdam this Thursdaywhile he is assisted in the work by David Friio, the company’s current sports director.
Longoria, who has worked at several clubs, became president of Marella in January 2021 after fans violently took over the club’s training center and demanded the resignation of his predecessor Jacques-Henri Eyraud, who was appointed by the owner, American billionaire Frank McCourt.
During this time the club took off He finished on the podium in the French league two seasons in a row, something Olympique had not achieved since 2011. However, their last major title came in 2010 when they won the French league with Didier Deschamps as coach.
Olympique had no luck with the substitutes’ benches, where they saw the Argentine Jorge Sampaoli abruptly leave his position, dissatisfied with the transfer policy of the management and Igor Tudor, which led to the appointment of Marcelino, a bad decision accepted by the stands . who preferred a more prestigious coach.
The elimination in the previous rounds of the Champions League and the team’s poor play ultimately spoiled the atmosphere and brought Marseille to the brink of the abyss.