Third defeat for Olympique de Marseille in the Champions League and third big rant from Ciel et Blanc against the refereeing. As after the setbacks conceded in Madrid or Lisbon, the Marseille camp was angry with the referee after the match lost at the Vélodrome against Atalanta Bergamo (0-1) on Wednesday.
The Olympians could not digest the referee’s decision not to award a penalty after an obvious handball from Ederson in the final moments of the match. And the Marseillais had it all the worse as in the continuation of the action, the Italians would score the only goal of the match thanks to a splendid strike from Lazar Samardzic.
The frustration was immense and Medhi Benatia did not mince his words after the match. “For my part, yes, it’s a theft. It’s hard to accept, he said in remarks relayed by La Chaîne L’Equipe. This is a situation where we clearly see that the player is taking advantage of an unnatural position. There is also Aubameyang who is arming himself to strike. We can clearly see that the arm completely changes the trajectory of the ball. »
“They are arrogant”
“For me, there was everything to lead to this penalty being whistled, he continued. Behind, in addition, we score the goal which kills us so obviously, that has a big responsibility. I would have at least liked him to look, because if there is doubt, it could be a penalty. The least we can do is check it out, form a more certain opinion and take responsibility. »
And the Marseille sports director continued by pointing out in a more general way the attitude of the refereeing body. “Besides, when you talk to them, they barely look at you. This is perhaps something that bothers me even more than the penalty. They are arrogant. It’s really frustrating,”
he lashed out, not forgetting to also regret the inadequacies of his troops, particularly in the first period.
