The head coach of OM reflected on his team’s victory against Lille (2-1) on Saturday evening, as well as the situation involving Dimitri Payet, who did not participate in the game.
After the game, Igor Tudor, the coach of Marseille, who led his team to a 2-1 victory over Lille on the eighth day of Ligue 1 play on Saturday evening, shared his thoughts as follows: “It was not a trap match; it was a super important match, against a direct opponent for the top of the table, champion two years ago, with a good coach who had all week to work and who changed the system, which has adapted. At the break, I said that I was looking forward to seeing the sequel. I wanted us to go out to win. We pushed and we scored. We were playing against a good team; we were better than them, and that’s something to appreciate. Congratulations to the players
The Croatian then proceeded to explain the substitution that had been made for Leonardo Balerdi just before the thirty-minute mark: “When I removed it, I had to do something that is not one of my favorite things to do. It wasn’t because he played poorly that I took him out of the game; rather, it was because the referee handed out cards so easily that I was scared he would get a second one. Indeed, that is the case. The whistles were not to my liking. Leo is a nice boy and an excellent player, and he always gives it his best shot.
Last but not least, Tudor was unable to avoid the topic of Dimitri Payet, who did not participate in this game and instead remained still on the bench: “There is always the question about Payet, it’s the joker question” (smiles). It might use a little less repetition. I would like to extend my congratulations to everyone who participated in today’s game; the offensive trio that we had tonight was outstanding. Everyone, including Dimitri, Gerson, and the rest of the people, is in for a fun day. There are many games, and you will need to pay attention to every single one of them, particularly when you play once every three days. I had a conversation with him the day before (Friday), during which I detailed my approach, and he concurred with it. I informed him that he would play one instead of two, which would ensure that he would get the starting position in the Champions League. And I do not doubt that he will perform well because he is such a talented athlete. I observe that he is optimistic while he is training. In addition to that, he was having issues with his calf, which stopped him from training before London.»