‘A scandal’ – Sporting director Medhi Benatia fumes at Marseille’s defeat to Lorient | OneFootball

Olympique de Marseille sporting director Medhi Benatia launched an extraordinary rant after OM’s defeat to Lorient, branding his side’s performance “a scandal” and accusing the players of showing too little pride, desire and respect for the club.

Speaking after a damaging loss in what he described as one of Marseille’s “five finals”, Benatia said he had not planned to speak publicly again before the end of the season, but felt compelled to intervene after what he saw as an unacceptable display.

“It’s a scandal,” Benatia said in the mixed zone at Lorient, transcribed by local media outlet Le Phocéen. “We were playing against a team that is almost already on holiday, even if they have quality, and we are playing the first of our five finals. We organise training camps to build connections and to work, and yet nobody reacts in the dressing room. Everything is calm, as if nothing happened.”

The former Morocco international reserved particular criticism for Marseille’s lack of aggression and urgency, insisting that a team with Champions League ambitions must show far more on the pitch.

“You play for Olympique de Marseille, you produce a match like that and you accept it. I do not accept it,” he said. “We didn’t win a duel, we didn’t make a run forward, we didn’t try anything. We just watched the opponent play. When you talk about a Champions League objective, it has to be visible on the pitch. Here, it wasn’t.”

Benatia also admitted he could not explain OM’s continued inconsistency this season, referencing similarly poor performances against sides such as Club Brugge, Paris Saint-Germain and Nantes.

“I can’t explain it,” he said. “We’ve had this kind of match several times this season and it’s inexplicable. During the week, we work well, but in matches it doesn’t always show. Some players may go elsewhere and people will say they are good players. But here, they won’t have made the effort. That is the most serious thing.“Benatia will depart the club at the end of the season, after being called back to the club by owner Frank McCourt when he handed his own resignation following the departure of Roberto De Zerbi earlier this year. GFFN | George Boxall