No one missed this kind of scene. As in Nice in August, Dimitri Payet received in the head this Sunday evening a projectile launched from the stands, in this case a bottle of water, during the Olympique Lyonnais – Olympique de Marseille match, while he was preparing to take a corner. The international tricolor quickly collapsed to the ground.
Shortly after 9 p.m., the referee of the match, Ruddy Buquet, made the decision to interrupt the match, which had only started a few minutes. The player ended up getting up with an ice pack on his temple after being treated when the two teams had already returned to the locker room.
The leaders of the two clubs and the delegates of the meeting as well as the refereeing body met in a crisis cell. An hour after the incident, the decision was taken to resume the match and the announcement was made by the stadium announcer.
A season (too) often disrupted by incidents with supporters
Just before this attack, the announcer of the Groupama stadium had already called for calm the supporters of this 118th “Olympico” which brings together more than 50,000 supporters. The number 10 of OM had not been able to take his corner for the first time. The referee then warned the captains of the two teams (Houssem Aouar for Lyon and Payet for Marseille) that in the event of new incidents, the match would be stopped “whether or not a player is affected”. According to the broadcaster, Amazon Prime, the author of this bottle throw would have been spotted by the police and apprehended.
In a press release published in the evening, the Professional Football League (LFP) “strongly condemns the violent aggression suffered by Dimitri Payet during the Olympique Lyonnais – Olympique de Marseille meeting. Following this cowardly aggression, Dimitri Payet was also the target of discriminatory insults ”.
Since the resumption of this season, violent events have multiplied around Ligue 1 matches. At least six matches have already been disrupted by interventions from supporters. Already in August, OM’s match against Nice was stopped during incidents between supporters and players. The OM team then refused to return to the pitch.
At the end of September, a Nice supporter who kicked Dimitri Payet was sentenced to a one-year suspended prison sentence and five years of stadium ban.
