OM and Payet, it’s over. Pablo Longoria, president of the Marseille club, called an emergency press conference on Friday July 21. He had a terrible announcement to make: Dimitri Payet is leaving OM. The 36-year-old French striker, who did not take part in the camp in Germany with the rest of the group, had trained alone this week. During the press conference, he couldn’t hold back his tears and asked his teammates for forgiveness, which he hasn’t been able to answer for the past few days.
“We have decided not to continue the adventure together with our captain. It took many weeks of reflection, of discussion, “announced Pablo Longoria alongside a very moved Dimitri Payet, who explained that he wanted to “continue to play” elsewhere.
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Attached to the city and the club, where he was playing his ninth season, Payet had signed under the mandate of former president Jacques-Henri Eyraud a contract which bound him to OM until June 2024 and ensured him a retraining within the club.
Alongside Pablo Longoria, the number 10 and former international (38 caps, 8 goals), very moved and in tears, announced that he wanted to “continue to play football”, after “a very difficult season with little playing time”. But the playmaker said he wanted to give himself “time” to make a decision.
His future will therefore be played out far from OM, where he will have played eight and a half seasons (2013 to 2015, then 2017 to 2023) for 326 games, 78 goals and 95 assists, according to statistics given by the club on Friday. A decade or so of passion, but without ever having won a single title.
During his career in Ligue 1 under the jerseys of Marseille, Lille, Saint-Étienne and Nantes, he played 492 matches and scored 103 goals, according to the Professional Football League (LFP).
During his interlude with London club West Ham (2015-2017), he wore the Hammers jersey 49 times and scored 11 goals, before returning to Marseille.
In the France team, he particularly shone at the start of Euro 2016, notably with a superb goal to snatch victory against Romania, but two years later, injured in the Europa League final against Atlético Madrid, the attacking midfielder did not participate in the 2018 World Cup triumphant of the Blues.
Payet was coming out of a very complicated last year, during which he had never managed to fit into the plans of ex-coach Igor Tudor: he appeared only 26 times last season, for 4 goals, generally grabbing a few minutes at the end of the game.
“Dimitri, you are a very important part of the history of this club. You have inspired a generation of OM supporters, with many very good moments, great victories, shared moments,” said Pablo Longoria. “It’s not a goodbye but a see you soon.” You have the doors of the club wide open,” he added.
