INTERVIEW
What face will the team aligned by Olympique de Marseille have next season, starting next August? For the moment, it is the vagueness that reigns: an XXL buyout offer carried by the former president of the Toulon rugby club, Mourad Boudjellal, will be deposited at the beginning of next week to the current owner, the American Frank McCourt. If the president of OM, Jacques-Henri Eyraud, indicated on Saturday that the club was not for sale, the former Marseille player, Mario Lemina, confides on Europe 1 that a return to Marseille would be "tempting", under the Eyraud presidency or not.
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"Even without the project that arrives, Marseille remains my heart club", explains to Lionel Rosso's microphone the one who wore the colors of Marseille for three years, from 2013 to 2016 (with a loan to Juventus Turin last season). "Go back, why not. If there is such a beautiful project, it is even more tempting."
A return to France? "It would be my pleasure"
Mario Lemina, 26, is currently on loan from the Southampton English club to Galatasaray, an iconic formation in Istanbul. And if he feels "good" and "loved by the supporters" of the Turkish club, the midfielder would not be against a return to France: "There are clubs that have great projects", ensures- he. "It would not be a demotion at all, but a comeback. It would really make me happy."
The former Lorient and Turin keep a special attachment to Olympique de Marseille, where he played 50 games in just over two seasons. "I met very beautiful people at OM, great coaches like Bielsa," recalls the Gabonese. "There are things that made me mature a lot and made me grow as a man."