Three seasons and one hundred and twenty-seven games after his arrival, Pau Lopez ended the chapter of his shared adventure with Olympique de Marseille on Friday. Still the starting goalkeeper last season, the Spaniard was pushed out by the arrival on the bench of Roberto De Zerbi, who was determined to replace him. The new Marseille coach recruited Geronimo Rulli and Jeffrey De Lange, leaving Lopez with no hope. Marseille announced his departure today.
The day before, Pau Lopez had posted a very long farewell message on his social networks. A message without any apparent bitterness for the goalkeeper loaned to Girona with a purchase option estimated at around 6.5 million euros. In its very brief message, OM simply recalled the many matches played by the goalkeeper under its colors, without omitting the traditional: ” Good luck Pau Lopez “, decorated with a small sky blue heart.
Gazzaniga’s lining?
The fans commented in large numbers on this announcement, thanking the player for his involvement during his time at Olympique de Marseille. The majority especially wanted to highlight Pau Lopez’s humanism off the pitch and his accessibility to the public. Pau Lopez will therefore join a Girona team, surprise of La Liga last season with an incredible third place to the key, synonymous with the Champions League.
It remains to be seen what the role of the Iberian goalkeeper will be. He should logically play the role of understudy to the usual starter, Paulo Gazzaniga, who was also on the pitch on Thursday evening during the draw brought back from a trip to Real Betis (1-1) on the first day of the new Liga season.
