Former Olympique Lyonnais owner Jean-Michel Aulas has called for Olympique de Marseille to be sanctioned after Les Gones’ team bus was attacked by Marseille fans en route for Sunday’s Ligue 1 tie at the Vélodrome.
Manager Fabio Grosso was injured during the attack, which took place in the area surrounding the Véldrome. Projectiles thrown by OM fans smashed the glass of the Lyon team bus. A bottle was then thrown through the open window, striking Grosso just above his left eye. The wound required stitches and with Grosso unable to take his place in the dugout, the game was abandoned, just minutes before the scheduled kick-off time.
600 Lyon fans also made the trip to Marseille and were also attacked on their approach to the stadium. Aulas, who was stripped of his presidential role by John Textor earlier this year, has now called for OM to be sanctioned for the incidents. The LFP are currently not investigating the incident as the incidents took place outside of the stadium and therefore sanctioning the incident falls outside of their jurisdiction.
Aulas calls for racist gestures in Lyon away-end to be punished
“You can’t be completely exonerated from responsibility,” Aulas told L’Équipe. “Football, the club (OM) and of course, the public security services all have a share of responsibility in this affair, especially since it was foreseeable.”
Asked specifically whether he believes that Marseille should be sanctioned for the incident, he replied, “I will leave it to the people responsible for deciding and ask them to decide with their soul and conscience, but a very heavy sanction is needed. Otherwise, next time, there will be deaths. Fabio could have lost his eye.”
Aulas also called for those who made racist gestures in Lyon’s away end to be punished. Footage has shown supporters within Lyon’s travelling section making Nazi salutes and monkey gestures towards Marseille fans. “It’s unacceptable [..] it is easy to find those that did it. There are cameras. They need to be sentenced and excluded,” said Aulas. The LFP announced on Tuesday that an investigation has been opened into the incidents.
