INTERVIEW
To date, he is the first (and only) French player to have won the Ballon d'Or while playing in a French club. It was in 1991 with Olympique de Marseille. The legend Jean-Pierre Papin was invited Sunday evening in Europe 1 Sport. And spoke about the end of Ligue 1, the Champions League and the image of French football since the start of a coronavirus crisis which paralyzes the entire world of sport.
On the shutdown of Ligue 1
"For me it was the right solution. What I would have preferred is that it be more solemn on the part of UEFA, which decides to stop all the European championships. Because here we are talking recovery in some countries. Everything is a bit complicated. But for me, stopping was an inevitable solution. As long as the rules are not the same for everyone, we can discuss, but again, the sport after all that has happened. People are dead. There is a body, UEFA, which is able to say stop, but it does not. It disappoints me a little. If I had been "I wanted to go back to the field. After that, could it have been possible? I don't know. My life is football, but I also understand those who have doubts. The only Ligue 1 club that was practically doomed was Toulouse. For Amiens and Lyon, it's more difficult. But you had to leave on time. If you were away i by the hour, there would be no worry. "
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On protest clubs
"We can understand a lot of things once the exercise is not over, we can always imagine that we can get out of it. Simply, there is a global pandemic, there have been almost 25,000 dead in France Honestly, football comes after. Obviously, the leaders feel aggrieved, but the people who have lost loved ones, they do not feel aggrieved too? It seems that they have been dropped. It's a bit shocking. "
Whether or not to pursue the Champions League
"There is no sporting parameter, there is only the financial parameter. We are in an unprecedented situation that no one would have imagined, so we have to deal with it. For me, playing the Champions League out of 15 days, that has no value. We had to stop too, too bad for what was going to happen. I too experienced the fact that there was no final of the Coupe de France in 1992 ( after the tragic events in Furiani, the fall of a temporary platform left 18 dead and thousands injured (editor's note). "I think we had to put an end to everything and start off with a new season. And, above all, start with spectators. Without spectators, that doesn't mean much either."
On the image of French football since the start of the crisis
"It's typically French, it's always like that in our country. We're used to it. There are countries that have big championships. We don't hear too much from the English, the Germans, the Italians or the Spanish There are only us who make waves. After I understand, I know that losing millions of euros is difficult, even problematic, but how else? If we do not make decisions, we will never advance "Everyone is defending their steak, but you have to let it go for a while, the decision has just been made. The appeals, we will not escape them. The government has made decisions that are not easy, but we have to respect. "
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On Olympique de Marseille, second in Ligue 1
"The season is magnificent for OM. It is perfectly legitimate to finish second, it is the best team I have seen behind PSG. For the Champions League, we have to see with what numbers, and to figure out how. It’s good for French football that OM is coming back to the fore. Now, the Champions League is a very complicated competition and Marseille supporters are only looking forward to it. see well appear (the last participation dates back to 2013, OM had finished last in their group with six defeats in six games, editor's note.) No Marseillais in the standard team? It is not important, the most important, this is the classification. I saw a beautiful team, beautiful football, it doesn't matter. "
On Paris Saint-Germain, still in the Champions League
"Of course, they have everything to win the Champions League, great talents, a beautiful stadium, a good crowd. After that, it will take whatever happens to beat the best. Paris Saint-Germain has always procrastinated at the end They have five matches left (round-trip quarter-finals, round-trip semi-finals and final) to win it. Of course it is possible and I think he will win it one day. I'm sure. After there is a parameter that comes into play, it's football, you have to be better than the other. Whether it be by Manchester or by Barcelona, the Parisians were outclassed when they were certainly also strong. "