The Adrien Rabiot affair marked the start of the season of Olympique de Marseille, with this highly publicized altercation with Jonathan Rowe, who led to the two players. In an interview with WorldMedhi Benatia, OM sports director, returned to these events, clarifying his position and the role he was able to play in resolving this boiling file.
Asked about the gaze he looks at today on the fight between Adrien Rabiot and Jonathan Rowe, Medhi Benatia answers in all frankness: ” I am very close to Adrien, whom I really like. I always said it, before, during and after the episode. But unfortunately there was this event which, for me, went too far. »»
The former defender of Juventus Turin indicates that the intervention of the family of Adrien Rabiot, in particular that of his mother Véronique Rabiot, complicated the resolution of the conflict. “”
It then degenerated when his family got involved … It's unfortunate, because he is a beautiful person and a great professional. We would have liked it to be adjusted differently. Humanly, I'm just sad not to see him anymore when arriving here … Here, I only wish him good “, he said.
Rabiot, a value well above the 7 million euros
The rest of the story, everyone knows it. Adrien Rabiot was sold to AC Milan, while Jonathan Rowe took the direction of Bologna. “” I had only one desire in mind: to close the parenthesis, so as not to drag the file all year round. Either Adrien decided to do what it was necessary to reintegrate it, or we made things easier to go elsewhere He says.
After having exchanged at length with the former Parisian, the two parties then decided that a departure would be the best solution: ” I chatted with him a few days before he left for selection, for a good hour. I felt that he was attached to OM, but that at the same time he believed that he had done my best to pick up the songs … so it was better to consider his departure. »»
The French international then took the direction of Lombardy for a damned sum of 7 million euros, far from his real value, as explained by Medhi Benatia. “” You can't ask for the moon: you sell Adrien because something happened, he explains. Otherwise, its value is perhaps 20 million euros. But there was a kind of gentlemen agrement in his contract. Until the end of July, he could leave for a minimal sum, because he had come for free to OM and had accepted a really low salary compared to his talent. On arrival, the transfer intervened after this period and was more expensive, but remaining reasonable. It is also a way of showing our gratitude. »»
