MARSEILLE, France (AP) — Marseille is looking to reignite its season with a new coach.
The nine-time French champions appointed Habib Bey to replace Roberto De Zerbi after the club suffered a downturn and were knocked out of the Champions League, dropping 12 points behind. Ligue 1 Leader’s lens.
Former Senegal international Bey, who played for Marseille, will be in charge of Friday’s trip to Brest.
After leading Red Star to promotion to Ligue 2, Bey spent the last year and a half as Rennes manager. club bey fired this month.
major matches
Marseille have failed to win their last three league games, severely damaging their title hopes. results containing 5-0 against PSG It made fans angry. The club expects Bey, a disciplined player who insists on possession and a strong attacking identity, to create an impact.
Marseille owner Frank McCourt said Bey’s appointment “refocuses the focus on the issues that still need to be addressed between now and the end of the season”.
Since McCourt bought Marseille in 2016, the former powerhouse side have failed to find stability amid a succession of managers and crises. They have been away from winning the league since 2010.
PSG then handed over the top spot to Lens. lost 3-1 to Rennes last week. Luis Enrique’s side bounced back on Saturday with a 3-2 win over Monaco and bottom-placed Metz in the first leg of the Champions League play-offs. Lens will host Monaco on the same day.
Third place Lyon, who have won an astonishing 13 consecutive games, will face Strasbourg on Sunday.
Featured players
Former Arsenal striker Folarin Balogun is in top form as his country’s World Cup approaches. The American forward scored twice in 18 minutes against PSG, taking his tally to 10 goals and four assists this season.
Desiree Douet is in great form for PSG.
After his team quickly fell two goals behind against Monaco in midweek, Douai came to the rescue to turn things around. The France international relentlessly left his mark on the game after coming on for Ousmane Dembele. He first narrowed the gap, contributing to Achraf Hakimi’s equalizing goal and scoring the winning goal.
Activity suspended
Dembele is expected to miss PSG’s game against Metz due to a left calf injury.
off the field
PSG was sanctioned by the French league’s disciplinary committee with a partial closure of the Auteuil Stand for two games and a fine of 10,000 euros (approximately $11,800) after the team displayed banners and insulted supporters during a match against Marseille at the Parc des Princes on February 8. Immediately after the start of the game, there were brief racist chants against Marseille, and the referee stopped play for about a minute around the 70th minute.
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