According to a report from L’Équipe, Marseille have decided against making another managerial change with just two games of the Ligue 1 season left despite Saturday’s 3-0 defeat to Nantes.
OM’s hierarchy have not considered replacing Beye ahead of crucial fixtures against Le Havre and Rennes, even as the club’s season continues to unravel dramatically. The former Red Star coach has now suffered five defeats in his ten league matches in charge, but Marseille’s leadership reportedly believe the problems run far deeper than the coach himself.
After Roberto De Zerbi’s departure earlier this year, Jacques Abardonado briefly took interim charge for a 2-2 draw against Strasbourg in February, but Marseille are reluctant to repeat another short-term reshuffle. Club officials instead see a fractured dressing room, exhausted squad, and disappearing authority figures as the root causes behind the collapse.
Marseille were once targeting automatic UEFA Champions League qualification but have now fallen to seventh place in Ligue 1. Their only realistic objective is now securing a UEFA Europa Conference League play-off spot, which would become available if RC Lens defeat OGC Nice in the Coupe de France final later this month.
The defeat at Nantes followed another disastrous away performance at Lorient in April and L’Équipe also report that it has prompted the club to impose yet another lockdown at La Commanderie. Players reported back to the training ground on Sunday morning after returning from Nantes the previous evening and were informed they would remain together under stricter conditions from Monday night onwards.
The exact length of the camp has not yet been communicated to the squad, with the club opting for day-by-day planning in an attempt to maintain pressure and focus. However, similar disciplinary measures introduced after the Lorient defeat reportedly had little lasting effect.
Marseille director of football Medhi Benatia reportedly remains furious with the squad’s attitude and performances. After publicly criticising the players following the Lorient defeat, Benatia reportedly chose not to address the squad directly after the latest collapse at La Beaujoire. Instead, he travelled to Rennes on Sunday to watch Marseille’s reserve side qualify for the final of the Challenge Espoirs.
Internally, there is growing acceptance that many players already have their minds fixed on summer departures. L’Équipe report that “the immense majority” of the squad are already thinking about future transfers, leaving few voices capable of re-mobilising the group during the closing weeks of the campaign.
Beye himself was reportedly satisfied with the quality of training sessions before the Nantes defeat and was left stunned by the scale of the collapse during the match. Despite the worsening results, the former Senegal international has no intention of resigning before the season concludes.GFFN | George Boxall
