The Ligue 1 clash between Lyon and Marseille was abandoned two hours after Dimitri Payet was hit on the head with a water bottle while he was preparing to take a corner for his side. The incident happened in the 5th minute of the game at the Groupama Stadium, and referee Ruddy Buquet sent both teams into the dressing room immediately.
The Frenchman was left floored and needed an icepack on his head as he made his way back to the dressing room. The Lyon players rushed to the former West Ham midfielder to offer their apologies for this cowardly attack, and they later came onto the field to warm up, expecting the game to resume.
However, the referee Ruddy Buquet decided to call the game off a couple of hours after the game was interrupted. Lyon president Jean-Michel Aulas mentioned that the perpetrator has been caught immediately and action will be taken against him. He also offered the victim his apologies on behalf of the club.
Although the chairman of the club mentioned that the referee “changed his mind”, Buquet confirmed that he never had any intentions of resuming the match. Quite visibly, the hosts were ready to take the pitch, but Marseille players never came out after heading into the green room.
Ligue de Football Professionnel released a statement labelling the incident a “cowardly attack” and said it “regrets” the regional authorities’ intention to resume the match. They also said that Payet was at the receiving end of multiple insults after the bottle was thrown and condemned the violent aggression of the fans inside the stadium.
Not for the first time this season, a match has been abandoned by crowd violence. Nice were docked two points, one of which was suspended, for crowd trouble during their game against Marseille at the start of the season. Their game was rescheduled towards the end of October at a neutral venue without the involvement of fans.
Tempers were flaring aplenty for this contest, as the hosts were in desperate need for a win to come closer to a top-four position. As it stands, Marseille are fourth in the table with 24 points whilst Lyon currently sit seventh with 20 points.
