“Tonight, we crossed the limit”lamented Wednesday, May 11, Jérôme Alonzo, football consultant for franceinfo, after the chanting of Nice supporters during the match against AS Saint-Etienne, a late match for the 36th day of Ligue 1. “The limit is to insult the memory of a man who died tragically, he adds. “The Nice club is dirty.”
In the 9th minute, a song was sung by the people of Nice referring to Emiliano Sala, former FC Nantes striker, who died in 2019 in a plane crash. The aircraft was damaged at sea. “He’s an Argentinian, who doesn’t swim well, Emiliano underwater”, we could clearly hear from the stands of the Allianz Riviera. A chant chanted four days after the defeat against Nantes in the Coupe de France.
Jérôme Alonzo was in the stands on Wednesday. The franceinfo consultant commented on the match for a television channel. “We didn’t hear it right away, with headphones it’s complicated”, he admits. “We then saw it on social networks, it was very complicated to continue, to continue to comment”.
Jérôme Alonzo denounces the behavior of the supporters this season. “We see a lot of things this year,” he comments. “We were not spoiled in terms of incidents in the stands but there, once again, we crossed a limit”. “The limit is the death of a man who died tragically and to take revenge for a defeat on Sunday in the Coupe de France, continues the consultant. “Obviously it’s against Emiliano Sala and against FC Nantes”. A premeditated act according to him. “It’s a repeated song, which has been prepared to insult the memory of a dead person and I find it sickening.”
During the press conference at the end of the match between OGC Nice and ASSE, coach Christophe Galtier condemned this song on behalf of his players, his staff and the club. “I agree with his words, but there is also the city of Nice which is dirty, the club and the employees who are dirty, hammers Jérôme Alonzo. It’s all French football that is dirty tonight.”