Marseille owner supports Longoria

The owner of Olympique de Marseillethe American billionaire Frank McCourtshowed this Thursday clear support for the president of the club, the Espanyol Pablo Longoriawho took a step back from his position in the face of threats received from fan groups.

Three days after those events, McCourtcan be found at USAbroke his silence with a statement in which he showed his “strong” support for Longoria and his team and made sure he was looking for a way to restore their positions.

The tension among the fans, which was expressed in a meeting with their leaders on Monday, led to the resignation of the coach, who is also a Spaniard. Marcelino Garcia Toraland caused the president to suspend his position, at the disposal of the owner.

In an interview with the local newspaper La Provence, Longoria He claimed to be living “the worst moment” of his life.

“Support the board, staff and players of Marseilles, which are guarantees of our club’s continued success, are and will continue to be my absolute priority. This support implies the guarantee of their safety and a healthy environment, which contributes to success,” he said. McCourt.

The real estate developer of Bostonowner of the club since 2016, has viciously attacked the fans, whom he accused of causing the resignation of Marcellin and considered his behavior “unacceptable.”

“Unfortunately this is not the only example of behavior that goes against the mission of our club. Our goal is to win on the field of play, to unite and inspire the people of Marseille. Monday’s incident is just one to many that undermines the foundations and the smooth functioning of the club and makes it very difficult to achieve our goals,” he added.

McCourt put in 2021 the management of Marseilles in the hands of Longoriawho carried out a deep restructuring of the entire club, which created many enemies in the city.

Well received at first by the stands, the Spanish manager saw how criticism at the Velodrome Stadium grew until Monday’s breakup, when fan representatives demanded his resignation.

Although in the last few hours the leader received great support on social networks, while a show of support was called for Thursday.

While Longoria He reported that he had received threats, which other participants in the meeting denied and maintained that they simply asked him to leave his position.

McCourt accepts the version of its leader and points out that the meeting was “an alarming display of aggression” in which the board was “subjected to threats of violence.”

The owner supported the management of the president, of which he said he was “proud” and defended the deep changes that were introduced “necessary to give the club a real chance to develop without obstacles for a long time. “

He indicated that this change required “strong collective support, inside and outside” of the club, as a way to “maintain the identity” of the club. Olympics and “build a club of the stature that the fans and the city of Marseille deserve.”

The intervention of McCourt This happens on the same day when the team plays its first match in the Europa League Amsterdam against Ajax and a few days before they face, this Sunday, against Paris Saint-Germain at the Parc des Princes.

Marcellin He left the club after only seven official matches, during which he failed to qualify the team for the group stage of the Champions League, but remained unbeaten in the national championship, where he was third, with two wins and three draws .