Marseilles (AFP)
McCourt consults, Sampaoli arrives: before going to Lille, where OM will still be led by Nasser Larguet on Wednesday (9 p.m.), the American owner of the club continued his series of meetings on Tuesday to play appeasement, pending the outline of a new era with the Argentine coach, arrived in Marseille.
- Sampaoli has arrived -
New OM coach, Jorge Sampaoli landed late Tuesday morning at Marignane airport.
The Argentine arrives from Brazil, where he managed Atlético Mineiro until last week.
"I am very happy to be here. I arrive in Marseille with a lot of hope and expectations, in a club that I have been following for a long time. I can not wait to start," he said in a video broadcast in the evening by the Provencal club.
"I hope we live up to the demands of the Olympian people because it is the most important thing in football. I have enormous respect for this popular fervor and I will do whatever I can in this such difficult period of pandemic for supporters to have joy, "he added.
"He has personality and the style to go in the direction you want. He has the Marseille personality in a South American person", for his part explained on RMC the new president of OM Pablo Longoria.
Even if he was officially appointed on Friday, there is almost no chance that the former Argentina and Chile coach will sit on the OM bench in Lille on Wednesday for the 28th day of L1. .
Given the Covid-19 pandemic, Sampaoli should indeed be subjected to a "septaine" and remain in isolation for a few days.
"I do not see how we could escape it," a source within the club told AFP.
In the meantime, interim Nasser Larguet will therefore continue, in Lille and then probably Sunday in Perpignan for the round of 16 of the Coupe de France against Canet-en-Roussillon (N2).
Sampaoli's first match could be the late match of Matchday 22, March 10 against Rennes.
- Busy agenda for McCourt -
After meeting the mayor of Marseille Benoît Payan and several supporters of groups on Monday, Frank McCourt, for his part, came to visit the players and staff at La Commanderie.
While gardeners were busy replanting huge cypresses to replace those that burned when the training center was invaded by angry supporters at the end of January, the businessman first met Larguet and his staff, before meeting with the players before training.
He then briefly appeared in the aisles of the Commandery, along with Longoria.
The black van which has been carrying him since his arrival was parked in the square where a small blue sign still indicates "Reserved JHE", like a vestige of the presidency of Jacques-Henri Eyraud.
McCourt then saw other heads of supporters' groups at the Vélodrome and the lifting of the formal notices sent to the six main groups by the previous management, already announced on Monday by the South Winners, was confirmed by OM.
On Wednesday, he is expected to attend his team's match in Lille.
"I realized that I had to be in Marseille more often. I intend to be there more often," he also said on RMC on Tuesday, while once again denying any desire to sell the club.
- Football and Longoria in the center -
In a long interview with La Provence, McCourt had also assured to want to "refocus OM on football" and clearly entrusted the orders of the vessel to Longoria.
On the field, OM remain on four league matches without defeat and the point taken on Sunday against Lyon is encouraging.
But the Provençal club, which can still target Europe via the Coupe de France or fifth place in the league must continue and Longoria, "a born leader" according to McCourt, will already be judged on the choice of Sampaoli.
"I do not know him but we will quickly get to know him. The truce (end of March) will allow us to work and get to know each other," Dimitri Payet summed up Tuesday.
OM N.10, on the other hand, ruled out comparisons between Sampaoli and Marcelo Bielsa, the last real idol of the Vélodrome.
"What I like is to win matches, whatever the way. I do not want to make comparisons. We need a coach who takes us in his project," he said.
© 2021 AFP