“The meeting changed with the exit of Payet”, analyzes Jorge Sampaoli after the elimination of OM against Feyenoord

Olympique de Marseille will not lift the very first Europa League conference trophy. Jorge Sampaoli’s players were eliminated at the gates of the final, Thursday, May 5, after their draw against Feyenoord Rotterdam (0-0), a result insufficient to erase the 2-3 defeat in the first leg.

For the Marseille coach, Dimitri Payet’s injury exit in the 30th minute turned the game upside down. “The start of the match was favorable to us, until Payet’s injury. Then we experienced a bit of confusion in our game (…). We did not manage to impose ourselves”, he said in a post-match press conference. The severity of the Marseille striker’s injury is not yet known.

“Dimitri is very, very important to us. We know he’s a different player”supported Luan Peres. “We are very sad about this result. We were hoping for the final but football is like that.”

Feyenoord hold Marseille to a goalless draw as their first-leg lead sees them reach the #UECLfinal#UECL

— UEFA Europa Conference League (@europacnfleague) May 5, 2022

Steve Mandanda also did not hide his sadness at the microphone of M6, while acknowledging that he had come across a great team. “We are disappointed for the fans. We deserved to go to the final and win this season”. The Marseille goalkeeper also wants to focus on the end of the season in Ligue 1 and snatch qualification for the Champions League next season. “After this disappointment, you have to take it. there’s a second place to go for in the championship and it’s not going to be easy”he continued.

The Marseillais are currently in second place in the Ligue 1 standings, with 65 points. But three days from the end, they only have a three-point lead over Rennes, whom they will meet on May 14, in the penultimate match of the season.