Didier Drogba, Franck Ribéry, Mamadou Niang, Samir Nasri, Marcel Desailly, Basile Boli or Josip Skoblar … The old Marseille glories will be present in number, Friday, on the lawn of the Vélodrome stadium to celebrate the 125 years of OM through a match of legends.
Another legend of the club will be present: unsurprisingly, Jean-Pierre Papin, coach of the OM reserve since the end of 2023, will indeed be there. And for many, JPP is nothing less than the greatest player in the history of the Marseille club.
In six seasons at OM, the former Valencienne scored 182 goals in 275 matches, finishing top scorer in Ligue 1 during five seasons in a row and winning four titles of champion of France (1989, 1990, 1991 and 1992). Sacred Ballon d'Or in 1991, he was not, on the other hand, victory in the Champions League in 1993 against Milan. The previous summer, he had indeed left Marseille to join … Milan AC.
Jean-Pierre Papin lived in OM his “most beautiful years of my career”
Jean-Pierre Papin had announced his departure on the lawn of the Vélodrome before the coronation match against Cannes. “I don't want to dwell too much, otherwise I will start crying. For six years, we have never lied. I wanted to tell you that I am going to Milan AC next year ”he launches in front of 48,000 devastated spectators. And despite the 2-0 victory won against the French Riviera club, the sadness is still palpable after the match.
“He's a friend, a real one and it's hard because it doesn't replace. It reminds me exactly the moment when Bernard Hinault was no longer in my team. I hope it won't do me the same because I had felt such a break, such an absence that I had stopped the bicycle a few months later ”, Confides Bernard Tapie, the Olympian president.
“We lose a great player, ABEDI PELÉE teammate abounds. OM knows what he owes him. He is one of his best assets and a real leader. »» JPP is indeed the best symbol of this OM which crushed the competition and his departure was also a heartbreak for the interested party. We were all brothers, not like today. We were sharing, we went to the restaurant, we saw each other a lot outside. I was very close to Eric Di Meco, of Waddle too, because I was one of the only ones to speak English. We have experienced exceptional things ”he told the Parisian afterwards.
“It's hard to explain but six years old will have forever marked my life. The most beautiful years of my career ”he added, seeming to forget the complicated beginnings he knew when he arrived in 1986 to the point of being renamed “I can no longer” by the supporters …
