Storied clubs Lyon and Marseille once dominated France. Now their rivalry is marred by violence
What was once a history of silverware and glory days has become a story of violence and gory days.
When French teams Lyon and Marseille meet on Sunday it will be yet another reminder of how far behind Paris Saint-Germain they have both fallen — on and off the field. Because the talk around their match is less about soccer and more about security.
Marseille fans are banned from attending Sunday’s game in Lyon following fan violence at the corresponding fixture in October.
Some Marseille fans waited for the Lyon team bus that night and pelted it with objects as it approached the stadium, shattering windows and injuring then-coach Fabio Grosso. The game was postponed and replayed at a later date.
It wasn't always this bad, and both clubs dominated French soccer before PSG did.
Marseille did so in the late 1980s and early 1990s, winning the Champions League in 1993, while Lyon ruled from 2002-08 as the emerging Karim Benzema and Brazil midfielder Juninho played leading roles.
But neither can challenge PSG now. The league table makes difficult reading for their fans and their respective American owners: Frank McCourt at Marseille and John Textor at Lyon.
Marseille is in seventh place and 15 points behind leader PSG, while Lyon is 16th out of 18 teams.
Lyon won the last of its seven straight league titles in 2008 and Marseille clinched the last of its 10 titles in 2010.
At that time, PSG had not won the French league since 1994 and counted only two titles.
But since 2010, PSG has won nine more to eclipse both of its rivals and set a French record with 11, thanks to cash-rich Qatari owners and helped by a raft of stars like Kylian Mbappé, Neymar, Lionel Messi and Zlatan Ibrahimović.
Lyon and Marseille no longer attract star names and make more headlines off the field than on it.
Given the numerous incidents of fan violence in France and other leagues this season, it was deemed too risky to allow visiting fans on Sunday.
Last season, rival fans fought outside Lyon’s stadium, and a decade earlier 17 people were injured when they clashed at a service station.
When Lyon hosted the Europa League final between Marseille and Atletico Madrid in 2018, no Marseille fans were allowed to enter the city center.
On the field, it has been a sorry season for Lyon and another inconsistent one for Marseille, with both teams changing coaches.
Marseille hired Marcelino to replace Igor Tudor after he left at the end of last season, but Marcelino resigned less than three months into the job citing tensions.
Former AC Milan and Italy midfielder Gennaro Gattuso took over at Marseille in difficult circumstances, and he has at least managed to make things more stable.
Lyon parted ways with former France defender Laurent Blanc after a poor start, replaced him with Grosso — a former Lyon player — and then fired Grosso. Interim coach Pierre Sage did well initially and was handed a permanent deal, but Lyon has lost the past two games.
Both sides rely on veteran goalscorers.
Former Arsenal forward Alexandre Lacazette has nine league goals — a decent amount for a struggling team — while his former Arsenal teammate Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang leads Marseille with six and has added five assists.
Marseille paid a club-record 32 million euros ($34.8 million) in last season's January transfer window to buy Portuguese forward Vitinha.
On Thursday he was loaned to Italian side Genoa, after mustering a paltry six goals in 43 games overall since joining.
Meanwhile, Mbappé continues to score freely and will look to add to his league-leading 19 goals on Friday when PSG plays at Strasbourg.
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AP soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccer
