The match between Lyon and Marseille, scheduled for this Sunday, was postponed after the visiting team’s bus was stoned upon arrival at the stadium. Italian coach Fabio Grosso was injured and arrived at the Velodrome with a bloodied face and visibly shaken.
The bus was stoned in the stadium area as the driver was maneuvering to park. The Lyon coach was reportedly hit by shrapnel. The now-shared footage shows one of the vehicle’s side windows broken and Fabio Grosso’s head pinned down after being assisted by doctors. It was necessary to remove pieces of glass from the Italian’s face, which was stitched with ten stitches in the venue’s medical facilities before being taken to hospital for tests due to dizziness.
After learning what had happened, Marseille’s coach, compatriot Gennaro Gattuso, met with his compatriot and former teammate to find out how he was doing. He was accompanied by the club’s president, Spaniard Pablo Longoria, and Jean-Pierre Papin, a member of the Marseillais board.
Shortly afterwards, the directors of the two clubs and the referee team met with the police and representatives of the French league and decided to postpone the match on matchday 10.
The president of Lyon, John Textor, the club where Portuguese players Anthony Lopes and Diego Moreira play, expressed “deep anger” over the incident, explaining that the team “wanted to play the match, but the coach was not clear of mind” . “He couldn’t have a conversation, he had shards of glass in his face. I am very outraged. Our players, our coach, had prepared for tonight and the fans wanted to see the match played,” said Textor.
Pablo Longoria, leader of Marseille, where striker Vitinha (ex-Sp. Braga) plays, also condemned what he called “completely unacceptable” actions.
Buses carrying Lyon fans were also stoned and around 600 fans were prevented from reaching the stadium by Marseille fans.
Source: DN
