Paris (AFP)

Neymar risks big: the Parisian superstar and the Marseille defender Alvaro Gonzalez, accused of having exchanged homophobic or racist remarks during the PSG-OM of September 13, pass in the disciplinary committee of the League on Wednesday (5:00 p.m.), with perhaps heavy penalties in sight.

Did Alvaro treat Neymar as a "monkey", as the Brazilian assures him?

He replied with offensive homophobic remarks against the Spaniard, as claimed by a Spanish channel?

Did he also utter a racist insult against the Japanese Hiroki Sakai, what a source close to OM believes to know?

These accusations are on the table of the Disciplinary Commission of the Professional Football League (LFP), which has investigated the case for two weeks and must, barring an improbable postponement, render its verdict on Wednesday evening after its meeting by videoconference, epilogue of the intense media drama animated by the two rival clubs of Ligue 1.

OM and PSG have indeed stepped up to protect their respective players, since the "Classic" of the French championship, won by the Marseillais at the Parc des Princes (1-0) after a meeting ended between fights , insults and exclusions.

- 10 risky suspension matches -

The goal will be to establish "what was actually said, what was actually heard", explained Sébastien Deneux, chairman of the disciplinary committee in mid-September.

While insisting on the fact that his commission only pronounced "on objective, tangible elements".

If the disciplinary regulations of the French Federation provide for ten suspension matches for "racist or discriminatory behavior", these sanctions can be "reduced", "increased", or "combined in whole or in part with the suspension" according to "circumstances", indicates this same regulation.

This makes the deliberation rather unpredictable, especially as case law is almost non-existent.

Cases directly involving players are indeed quite rare in the recent history of Ligue 1.

In 2007, Lyon striker Milan Baros was sanctioned with three suspension matches for pinching his nose while waving a hand in front, as if to fan a bad smell, when addressing the Cameroonian player from Rennes Stéphane Mbia.

And more recently, in 2013, the Englishman of Marseille Joey Barton was sentenced to two suspended matches from the National Council of Ethics (CNE) after treating the Parisian Thiago Silva of "fat" and " transsexual ", in particular, on social networks.

Since September 13, the cross accusations between Paris and Marseille have multiplied, as have lip reading expertise ordered by different media to try to decipher the words used by the two players on the lawn.

But the animosity has gradually subsided pending the decisive hearing on Wednesday.

- Death threats -

For Alvaro, "it's very strong emotionally, very complicated," said Marseille midfielder Morgan Sanson, while the Spaniard lodged a complaint after receiving death threats by the thousands after the meeting.

Parisian side, coach Thomas Tuchel said he was "worried" in view of the verdict, judging "unbalanced" the sanctions already taken by the disciplinary committee.

Two rounds of sanctions have indeed already been pronounced: the first concerned the Marseillais Jordan Amavi (3 matches) and Dario Benedetto (1 match), and the Parisians Layvin Kurzawa (6 matches), Leandro Paredes (2 matches closed plus one with reprieve) as well as Neymar, already (2 matches closed plus one suspended).

The second pinned Angel Di Maria (4 matches) for a spit in the direction of Alvaro Gonzalez.

This promises PSG a workforce still decimated in the coming weeks, if Neymar were to be suspended for several matches ...

© 2020 AFP