DECRYPTION – After the rout in the Champions League and the hiccup against Paris FC, Olympique de Marseille is playing very big this Tuesday (9:10 p.m.) against Stade Rennais, in the round of 16 of the Coupe de France.
Dig deeper or bounce back, OM must choose. Ridiculous and logically eliminated in Bruges (3-0 defeat) in the Champions League, then feverish on Saturday on the pitch of Paris FC (2-2), Olympique de Marseille is going through an (umpteenth) zone of turbulence when welcoming Stade Rennais, this Tuesday (9:10 p.m.), in the round of 16 of the Coupe de France. A double or nothing match for the Olympians who are desperately chasing a first trophy since 2012. In recent weeks, the Champions Trophy and the hope of a European journey have vanished following absurd scenarios. The Ligue 1 title already seems unattainable (nine points behind Paris Saint-Germain). That leaves the Cup, which the people of Marseille have coveted since the tenth victory acquired… in 1989.
Note that PSG, eliminated in the previous round by its neighbor Paris FC, is no longer in competition. A boon for OM, designated the new favorite and on whom all the pressure of the result rests? Rather a poisoned gift. Especially for a sick team which returns to its Vélodrome stadium this evening with low morale. The trust is gone. And everyone seems on edge at the Commanderie before this meeting against Rennes. In this deleterious climate, coach Roberto De Zerbi, disguised as Father Fouettard, saw fit to exclude his full-back Amir Murillo from the professional group. The Panamanian international – a replacement player, a starting player, shuffled between the right and left sides – would lack daily involvement. Scapegoat?
Skip the ad
Amir Murillo removed from the group
«I think everyone sees the goals taken from throw-ins, the goals a few seconds from the end or when we win 2-0 in the 82nd minute and we come back… The footballing error, I accept it, I always say it and I mean it. I do more than everyone. But there is one thing I want to see in my players, it is this hungerlaunched the Italian coach in his defense at a press conference this Monday. If I make a decision like this, it is because I surely have my reasons on the ground. Murillo is a good person, I like him a lot, he is a very strong player. But he who is not hungry does not play and does not come with me. If we have to lose, we lose, but with this hunger.»
Lack of “hunger” or simply bad dynamics, Amir Murillo is in any case the only player ousted in this way while the entire Marseille collective, and its designated leaders (Rulli, Balerdi, Hojbjerg, Kondogbia, Pavard…), dive first as soon as the boat rocks. On a tightrope emotionally and in tactical limbo, De Zerbi is trying to find a direction. Will he field a 32nd different team composition in 32 official matches this season? “I try to put the players in their positionshe firmly justifies himself. Obviously, changes happen because players want to play. No places are offered.»
Expected reaction of pride
The day after the “deadline” of the winter transfer window, with a Marseille station hall still operating at full capacity (arrivals of Abdelli and Nnadi, departures of Gomes, O’Riley, Bakola, Garcia), the choices of the Transalpine will (as always) be closely scrutinized. The first recruits of the winter Quinten Timber and Ethan Nwaneri are applying for a starting place. Nayef Aguerd, Igor Paixão and Emerson Palmieri remain, “uncertain“. But whatever the players lined up on the pitch, the Vélodrome first expects a reaction of pride worthy of the name. To put out a fire that the Phocaeans, the best arson firefighters in French football, set themselves alone in 2026, despite an attack which is still running at two goals per match.
«Right now, we are in the wrong. When you are in the wrong, you must apologize to move forwardphilosopher Of Zerbi. The Vélodrome is a mirror, a reflection of what you give on the pitch. Tomorrow, you have to be ready to receive whistles. That’s football. The moment is difficult, we can face it as men, by being angry. It hurts but you have to accept it and try to change things.»
Rarely has a Coupe de France round of 16 had so much importance in Marseille. And whoever guesses the outcome of this highly anticipated evening is very smart. Because if OM falters, Stade Rennais is also in full doubt. Habib Beye’s team, crushed in Monaco (4-0) on Saturday, remains with one draw and two defeats in the league. She has just sold Kader Meïté and Seko Fofana in the last moments of the transfer window but will present herself on Boulevard Michelet with her former Marseillais (Brassier, Merlin, Rongier), undoubtedly very motivated by the idea of imploding their old pressure cooker…
