The match that Marseille and Lyon had to play this Sunday at the close of the 10th day of the French Ligue 1 was postponed after the bus that was taking the Lyon players to the Stade Vélodrome was stoned by Marseille ultras and his coach, the Italian Fabio Grosso, injured in the head.
“We have taken note that Lyon did not want the match to take place”the referee declared at a press conference François Letexier to announce the postponement of the meeting, specifying that he has sent a report “to the competent authorities, who will decide what to do”.
However, the owner of Lyon, the american tycoon John Textorwas “very angry” about the attack, but assured that “everyone wanted to play (…), even after the incident. We all wanted to play football tonight”.
The president of Marseille, the Spanish Pablo Longoriaconsidered the events that occurred as “completely inadmissible.”
Sports Minister Amélie Oudéa-Castéra He described the images of the events as “outrageous” and “inadmissible”, in statements to AFP.
Security forces are focused on evacuating the stadium and ensuring the safety of players and fans. Lyon, said a police source.
Around 17:45 GMT, two hours before the scheduled start time of the match, the bus transporting the Lyon expedition to the Stade Vélodrome was attacked with projectiles and four of the vehicle’s windows exploded.
Grosso suffered cuts to one eye and, according to a Lyon source, the coach was a victim of “vertigo” and would suffer multiple traumas.
In images offered by Prime Video, broadcaster of Ligue 1 in France, you could see Gross with a bloody face and then leaving the Vélodrome infirmary with a bandage on his head.
In a photograph that has gone viral on X (formerly Twitter) you can see the coach lying on a stretcher, dressed in the Lyon tracksuit, with a gap at the level of his left eye.
According to police sources, a second person traveling on the bus would have been injured, who would be, according to some media, the deputy of the Italian coach.
On the other hand, a bus with Lyon fans was also attacked, according to another photograph published in X.
After a catastrophic debut of the season, Lyon, which won seven titles without interruption, between 2002 and 2008, is last in Ligue 1 and has not won this season.
Marseille, for its part, is also experiencing a turbulent season, which led to the Spaniard Marcelino García Toral to resign as coach after Longoria and several club officials were threatened by ultras for what they considered poor planning.
with Italian Gennaro Gattuso On the bench, Olympique Marseille is 9th with 12 points, although they have that match against Lyon pending.
Source: Ambito
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