Clockwise from top left: Habib Beye, Emmanuel Emegha, and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang. Composite: Getty Images
It was a wild weekend of French football, featuring standout performances from Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang and Emmanuel Emegha, alongside another low point for Bastia fans as the club made a dramatic exit.
The word “fire” has been a recurring theme in Marseille this season, often used figuratively to describe either the team’s blazing form or Habib Beye’s attempts to cool things down. But this week, the metaphor turned literal. Aubameyang was absent from the squad as Marseille traveled to Le Havre, desperate to end a three-match winless streak. Their recent slide not only dashed Champions League hopes but also put European qualification at serious risk.
Marseille fans had already boycotted the trip to Le Havre, and the club’s executives were growing increasingly frustrated. In a previous episode, Roberto De Zerbi took the squad to Rome for a training camp, with then-president Pablo Longoria citing an “illness” that needed to be “eradicated.” That led to a foreign retreat. This season, Beye’s team enjoyed a training camp in Marbella, but when results didn’t improve, the directors switched to a lockdown approach. After losing to Lorient two weeks ago, the squad endured an intense camp, sleeping at the training ground. And after last weekend’s defeat to Nantes, the extreme measures were repeated. “We have families, children, wives that we don’t see. We suffered a lot,” goalkeeper Gerónimo Rulli said after Sunday’s 1-0 win against Le Havre.
Despite the victory, Marseille’s performance remained unconvincing, and Le Havre missed a penalty in the second half. The harsh measures are not yielding results, yet the club’s management persists. This approach triggered chaos within the squad on the final night of the four-day camp. Aubameyang reportedly removed a fire extinguisher and sprayed its contents in the room of Bob Tahri, the former middle-distance runner turned staff member responsible for enforcing curfew. The training ground saw rooms trashed in what was described as “Commanderie fever.” Aubameyang was not alone, but he bore the consequences. Beye did not name the 36-year-old directly but said that “international players had to act like international players,” clearly implying they should not engage in childish rampages in the middle of the night.
Another confrontation unfolded in Strasbourg. Emmanuel Emegha, the forward set to join Chelsea at the end of the season, became the pantomime villain during Strasbourg’s Europa Conference League match on Thursday. Despite being injured and not in the squad for the defeat to Rayo Vallecano, Emegha drew attention. After a lackluster display that effectively ended Strasbourg’s season, fans gave the team a warm reception, including a “thank you” banner from the Kop. However, cheers turned to jeers when Emegha appeared. The Dutchman’s perceived arrogance has worsened his relationship with supporters, and he was targeted by the crowd.
The week also saw Bastia hit a new low, with fans igniting flares and firecrackers, overshadowing the action on the pitch.
