Après Benatia, c’est au tour de Longoria de dégoupiller. Samedi soir, sur la pelouse de l’Abbé-Deschamps, l’Olympique de Marseille a subi une lourde défaite face à Auxerre (0-3). Ce résultat, aussi inattendu que décevant pour une équipe deuxième de Ligue 1, a immédiatement fait bondir Pablo Longoria, président du club. Comme maintenant habituellement, au lieu de se concentrer sur la performance insuffisante de son équipe, c’est encore l’arbitrage qui a été pris pour cible principale.
After Benatia, it was Longoria's turn to lose his temper. On Saturday night, on the Abbé-Deschamps pitch, Olympique de Marseille suffered a heavy defeat against Auxerre (0-3). This result, as unexpected as it was disappointing for a team second in Ligue 1, immediately made Pablo Longoria, the club's president, jump. As usual now, instead of focusing on his team's insufficient performance, it was once again the refereeing that was the main target. Two decisions by the referee of the day, Jérémy Stinat, were truly at the root of Pablo Longoria's anger. First, a breakthrough by Merlin on the left side ended in the penalty area on the ground. On the images, we can clearly see contact with Auxerre defender Gabriel Osho, but it seems that the Marseille player had already started to fall before this contact. An action deemed shameful by the club president, who even pointed out that "four European referees sent me a message saying 'it's a penalty'". But it was above all the decision in the 67th minute that would get Marseille fans talking. Cornelius received a red card after a second yellow card following a dangerous gesture on Hamed Traoré. The Marseille central defender arrived with a high foot and hit the Auxerre player's hip. An action that seemed involuntary, especially since the contact took place after Cornelius had touched the ball. However, the gesture was still dangerous and although a direct red card could have been considered very severe, the yellow card was not unfair.
Contact entre Cornelius et Traoré qui entraîne un deuxième jaune et donc un rouge, Auxerre-OM, 22 février 2025 © Capture écran DAZN
After the match, we saw Longoria walking through the corridors making more than explosive remarks, describing Mr. Stignat's refereeing as "shameful" and "scandalous," even going so far as to speak of "corruption."
Les images complètes du CRAQUAGE de Pablo LONGORIA contre l’arbitrage ©DAZN
These remarks quickly prompted reactions at all levels. It was especially the term "corruption" that ruffled the feathers of the referees' union (SAFE) and led to the opening of an investigation by the National Ethics Committee for defamatory statements. SAFE quickly made its voice heard in response to Longoria's comments and stated in a press release: "No, Mr. Longoria, French referees are not corrupt! Losing a match cannot justify calling into question the integrity of French referees."
Refereeing has thus become an obsession for OM lately. Even before the kickoff against Auxerre, some had already pointed fingers at Jérémy Stignat, who had, a week ago, issued a red card to OM's sporting advisor, Mehdi Benatia. This red card, once again, had sparked criticism and outrage from the Marseillais. Thus, the French referee already had a sword of Damocles hanging over his head, his every move was scrutinized, and the end seemed already written in advance.
Medhi Benatia après son carton rouge après le match face à Lille en Coupe de France le 14 janvier © Capture écran BeinSport
Several hours after the meeting and Longoria's statements, it was reported that Jérémy Stignat had been the victim of a break-in at his home, with damage to his vehicles. A serious situation that reminds us that violence can unfortunately cross the boundaries of the field when words are too strong.
This morning, Longoria attempted to make amends by revisiting his statements, admitting: "No corruption in French football." "The wording was not appropriate and I regret that word," he continued, without straying from his central idea, namely that OM has been disadvantaged by refereeing this season. "Many refereeing decisions on which I believe OM has been treated unfairly," he explains. However, this backtracking will likely not be enough to escape a sanction from the disciplinary committee, which is expected to be announced on March 5th.
The Olympique de Marseille finds itself once again at the center of a controversy that could do it more harm than good. Sanctions could be imposed, and the tension does not seem ready to ease between the Marseille club and the refereeing body. It is true that appointing Mr. Stignat as the main referee for the match, shortly after the incident in Lille, was not the brightest idea. However, this does not justify the excessive reactions from the Marseille management in any way. In the meantime, OM must refocus on the league and bounce back in the next match to try to maintain its second place, which seems to be the best position to achieve this year given the significant gap with PSG.