The French star played for three Premier League teams but has had a difficult life since moving to France in the summer of 2024.
Former Brentford star Neal Maupay has been banished from Marseille’s first-team set-up. The former Brighton forward is currently only taking part in warm-ups, according to reports.
French newspaper L’Equipe claims the 29-year-old has been banned from first-team training and meetings. Maupay joined Marseille from Everton in the summer of 2024.
The striker had two spells at Brentford between 2019 and 2019, before joining on loan from the Toffees in 2023. Maupay played 24 games in all competitions for Marseille last season.
He scored four goals and recorded four assists. However, Marseille coach Roberto de Zerbi decided that Maupay was not yet at full strength as he looks to strengthen his squad with a new attacker.
Everton allowed him to leave in the summer, but Maupay has since been released and has yet to play a single minute for Marseille this season.
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The report made terrible reading for the French. “Maupai has rarely been prolific and with the lack of stats and the arrival of new forwards in Amine Gouiri (joined in January), Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang and Igor Paixao, the Frenchman’s game time will clearly be further reduced,” the report said.
“However, there were no buyers for the former Brentford and Everton centre-forward, so he remained with OM but at a fairly close margin. He only took part in the warm-up and spent the rest of the session passing passes and circling the pitch with the assistant manager.”
The report concluded that “Maupey was no longer included in the match-day squad and was no longer called to team meetings.”
After making a name for himself at Brentford and then Brighton, Everton have spent big to secure the Frenchman in August 2022. However, he played only 32 games over two seasons and subsequently criticized the club on social media.
Speaking about his ill-fated move to Everton, Maupay told Give Me Sport: “To be honest, I think about almost everything.
“We changed managers that season so the club wasn’t in the right position manager-wise. I think the way we played didn’t suit my game.”
“If you try to get a player like me to play long-ball football and put in crosses, it won’t work because it doesn’t suit my characteristics. I think sometimes it won’t work. You don’t know before you join a club or a manager, but that’s part of football.”
Maupay could now be aiming for a return to the Premier League. According to Le 10 Sport, Brentford have recently expressed an interest in Maupay returning to the club, with Trabzonspor and Sassuolo also reportedly interested in signing the player.
The French outlet claimed that the Bees had contacted the club over the summer to discuss the terms of a transfer, but that the move never materialized. However, Maupay could make a surprise return to the Premier League if Brentford revive their interest in January.
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