After a stormy meeting on Monday, OM leaders denounced threats of “war” from supporters’ representatives.
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Two days after the decision of OM leaders to withdraw from their posts, Marseille supporters groups react. Yesterday, coach Marcelino and president Pablo Longoria broke their silence to justify their position, claiming to have suffered threats of “war”, and “serious threats, insults and slander”. Six Marseille supporters’ associations (the Fanatics, MTP, South Winners, Amis de l’OM, Dodger’s and Handi Club OM) nevertheless assure in a press release, Thursday September 21, that they have not made any threats of death or violence against them .
>> Read: we summarize the four crazy days that set OM ablaze
“We must reestablish the truth in the face of defamatory remarks of unspeakable gravity: no ‘death threats’ or ‘threats of violence’ have ever been made against the leaders, their families or anyone”, assure the associations signatories of this press release. “We must not confuse intimidation with defending the interests of our players and our colors. Our cry of alarm in the face of the worrying abuses denounced in particular by the players at the training center and their families cannot serve as a pretext for the possible resignation of the management team which does not seem to want to face its responsibilities.
According to these supporters associations, the stormy meeting of September 18 “was originally supposed to relate to the organization of future trips”but “discussions quickly turned to the numerous dysfunctions of the training center”. Based on testimonies from parents of young players, the associations point the finger “questionable supervision methods which would have been put in place by the new Campus management team”. Among those, financing by parents of textile equipment for young people, or “degrading punitive sanctions which would have been inflicted on the women’s section”. In the rest of their press release, they also express dissatisfaction “faced with the increase in the price of the subscription justified only by a probable qualification for the Champions League”.
In an interview with ProvencePablo Longoria clarified that he had not offered his resignation to the club’s owner, Franck McCourt, who assured him of his firm support.