Former player, manager and coach of the reserve at OM until recently, Jean-Pierre Papin believes that supporters are important in Marseille, but that there are limits.
In Marseille, it is even the supporters who call the players to a meeting. Roberto De Zerbi and Pablo Longoria agreed to see them, in the company of some locker room executives, this Monday after the double fiasco against Bruges and against Paris FC.
Attitudes which leave Jean-Pierre Papin quite circumspect. The emblematic Olympique de Marseille striker, who was still with the club recently, wants dialogue to take place between the fans and the club’s stakeholders. On the other hand, JPP made it clear on RMC that it would be good for the supporters to stay in their places and not come to lecture the players.
« I agree that the president presides, the players play and the supporters support. But I think it’s also good to have a social connection between everyone. Go listen to the capo who insults you, I think I would never have gone there… We are not good, we are not good, but we are not going to apologize because we are not good. But as far as meetings with supporters, I wouldn’t say that I like it, but I find it useful”nevertheless qualified the former coach of the OM reserves, who knows that these meetings can sometimes be very stormy with the sanguine Marseille supporters.
