Key Takeaways
- Olympique de Marseille suffered a crushing 3-0 defeat away to FC Nantes, who had not won a Ligue 1 match since February
- Manager Habib Beye revealed he wanted to replace 80 to 90 percent of his players during the half-time interval
- The loss leaves Marseille in seventh place and ends their hopes of qualifying for next season’s UEFA Champions League
Olympique de Marseille have reached rock bottom in their disastrous second half of the season. They crashed to a 3-0 defeat against FC Nantes at the Stade de la Beaujoire. The home side had not secured a league victory since February.
Les Phocéens were second-best in every department on the pitch. The match remained close until the second half. Then the visitors collapsed completely. Three goals arrived in just eight minutes. Ignatius Ganago, Rémy Cabella and Matthis Abline all found the net for the hosts.
The result leaves Marseille languishing in seventh position on the table. Their dream of playing in next season’s UEFA Champions League has effectively ended. The club is now in total disarray. Speaking to Ligue1+, the league’s official streaming platform, manager Habib Beye struggled to explain the performance.
“There is no explanation for this,” Beye stated. “We all watched the same match. It is very hard to analyse because there was nothing to analyse. We did not even play football.”
The former Newcastle United defender had previously denied rumours that he had lost the dressing room. However, his tone changed after this heavy loss. “What happens in the changing room stays private,” he said. “I have already told the players exactly what I think.”
The coach tore into his squad’s attitude. He declared they do not deserve a place in Europe’s top competition after such a poor showing. “I could have substituted eighty or ninety percent of the team at half-time,” he fumed.
Beye also accepted his share of the responsibility for the disaster. He admitted he feels “really unwell” about the result. He added that he must “take a hard look” at his own management style.