Arriving at his favorite club during the winter transfer window must have been the culmination of a childhood dream. However, for this flagship recruit of OM, the adventure takes an extremely complicated turn under the orders of Habib Beye. While he had established himself as one of the most prominent defensive midfielders in Ligue 1 during the first part of the season, the player today seems totally paralyzed by the pressure inherent at the Stade Vélodrome. An infamous evil on the Canebière, which cruelly recalls the difficulties experienced by Iliman Ndiaye during his recent stay at the club.
The joker burned against Toulouse
This player in distress is none other than Himad Abdelli. The former Angers playing master undoubtedly missed his chance, burning all his personal credit in the process during the quarter-final of the Coupe de France against Toulouse. For his first start, the Algerian international experienced a real ordeal: warned at the start, overwhelmed in the impact and close to expulsion, he was taken out at half-time by his coach to protect him. Since this resounding disaster, the midfielder has completely disappeared from Marseille’s radar.
Plunged into anonymity, Abdelli is no longer even sure of finding a starting place by the end of the year. And for good reason, Habib Beye has in the meantime found his winning formula. OM have just scored three precious consecutive victories in the championship, all without needing to call on the native of Montreuil. The saying is well known in football: when the team is running at full capacity, those absent are always wrong, making the Algerian’s situation all the more precarious in the face of fierce competition in midfield.
An uncertain return for Abdelli
While we should perhaps not definitively condemn the Algerian international at this stage of the season, it would still be a huge surprise to see him shake up the hierarchy established by the Olympian coach again. The costume seems a little too big for him at the moment. For the former Angevin, who is champing at the bit on the bench or in the stands, the clock is ticking and the wait is logically becoming more and more difficult as the weeks go by.
