The progression is dazzling. In five years, the OM training center has gone from 23rd to 13th place in the ranking established by the French Football Federation. The time when the young nuggets of the Paca region fled Marseille is therefore over. According to Nasser Larguet, boss of the Olympian training center since June 2019, “relations are now more cordial and professional with the clubs in the region, which improves our attractiveness to young people. Families understand that proximity is a key to success. “
To improve the image of OM, Jacques-Henri Eyraud has signed partnerships with 21 amateur clubs in the region. The latter benefit from free training for their educators, from the organization of tournaments by OM and invitations to matches at the Vélodrome. In exchange, they signal the best elements to OM. These young people remain free to sign where they wish… But, at least, they appear in the radars of the Marseille club. However, “OM still missed shots that they might regret in a few years”, assures Azir Saïd Mohamed Cheik, a connoisseur of youth teams in Marseille.
“Lyon, a model for all training clubs”
“The first stage of training is the network of the territory. Olympique Lyonnais has been doing this for years. In Marseille, Andoni Zubizarreta was the one who put that in place, ”said Laurent Mommeja, founder of the Espoirs du football site. For him, OM “was necessarily inspired by Lyon, a model for all training clubs, but without imitating them”. For Jean-François Vulliez, boss of the OL training center, it is certain: “They observe and reproduce the good practices of other clubs. But we do it too! “Nasser Larguet refuses any comparison:” OM is a club which has its history, its particularity and its strengths. There are no models that we can duplicate. “
Like Lyon, its next opponent in the league this Sunday evening in Ligue 1, OM has however equipped itself with quality infrastructure dedicated to youth teams. The OM Campus, which cost six million euros, allows young people to benefit from the best playing conditions. Cameras have been installed there, as on the training grounds of the Commandery, and video analysts have been recruited . “Young people are very connected, it allows us to go further, greets an educator. Pictures speak better than long speeches. “For Marseille scout Bastien Cordoléani,” the structures are now those of a good training center. They have also made efforts at school level, with activities other than football, theater in particular, to open their minds. “
“16 players from the center are professionals in the making”
The efforts pay off: 100% of young people graduated last year, and six of them even got very good mentions. In sporting terms, the results are also satisfactory: this summer, six young people signed their first professional contract with OM, against three in Lyon. A sign of good health for the Marseille training center, even if not all are intended to play at the Vélodrome – for some it is a question of “locking” them in order to obtain a paid transfer on their departure, for example to a Ligue 2 club. But Nasser Larguet welcomes the integration of Marley Aké into the professional group, alongside former kids Maxime Lopez and Boubakar Kamara. “Over the last four seasons, sixteen players from the center are now professionals in the making,” says the head of Olympian training.
“The center of Marseille is structured well, they are progressing well”, applauds Jean-François Vulliez, director of the OL training center. But there is a long way to go to equal center Lyon, third in the FFF ranking. “We will see in five or ten years, smiles Olivier Mas, follower (and supporter) of the OL training center. But Lyon remains the benchmark. Moreover, Marseille has debauched former Lyon trainers … “The assistant coach of the reserve, Maxence Flachez, is a former OL. The Olympics are not completely sealed off.
