Longoria: "It's a gift to be president of OM"

“It was news that I didn't expect,” smiles Pablo Longoria.

And he was not the only one… To everyone's surprise, Frank McCourt ousted Jacques-Henri Eyraud on Friday evening to replace him with the now ex-director of football at OM.

From the top of his 34 years, the former sports director of Valencia and responsible for recruiting Juventus will discover new functions in a club he only joined six months ago.

“I have always had ambition and success in what I have undertaken in my life, but I wondered if I was prepared or not to take on these responsibilities in a big club like this.

I said to myself that yes, and why not, ”he says in an interview with

RMC Sport

this Tuesday evening.

Some were worried to see "JHE" present on the OM supervisory board, but Longoria wanted to be affirmative: "at 200%", he is the sole master on board, under the sole authority of Mr. McCourt, the owner.

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For the rest, the new boss of the Marseille club wanted to be fairly evasive on a number of subjects.

If he suggests that he is not looking for a new sports director, some having mentioned Luis Campos, he procrastinates about Gilles Ouvrard, the general manager, whose supporters are asking for the head.

“Individuals, we are not important.

It is the institution that is, ”he dribbles.

Wait and see in this file, therefore.

One thing is certain: leading OM is not a burden, despite the explosive context: "It's a gift to be president of OM".

"An owner is not someone who writes checks all the time, you have to be inventive"

Pablo Longoria

In terms of resources and transfer window, Pablo Longoria will be responsible for presenting his shopping list and his project to Frank McCourt.

"An owner is not someone who writes checks all the time," he warns nonetheless.

We have to be inventive.

It is not easy in football given the current context.

It is our responsibility as leaders to make a workforce as competitive as possible under the conditions that are ours. ”

Not frightened by the idea of ​​a workforce largely renewed next summer ("We changed seven-eight players per year in Valencia"), Longoria will have "a lot of conversations with the new coach of Olympique de Marseille, successor to 'Andre Villas-Boas, Jorge Sampaoli, to discuss the situation of each player.

Sampaoli “is a very good coach, he has changed all the teams he has coached.

He has a personality and a style that goes with what we want to build for the future.

You have to have personality to be in Marseille.

His requests?

There has been a lot of talk in recent weeks.

He analyzed the team a lot, we analyzed it together.

There are three stages: analyze the squad, build a squad for next season, and it's important that he arrives now for that, and have a plan for the future. ”

"

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Note that Pablo Longoria believes that it is still "possible" to imagine Florian Thauvin and Jordan Amavi extend by the end of their contract, next June.

Regarding the Polish international striker Arkadiusz Milik, for whom some media have mentioned a clause to return to Italy at the end of the season, Longoria is clear: “It's a loan (of 18 months) with an option to buy.

It's a creative operation but OM is in control. ”

Boubacar Kamara and Pape Gueye, untransferable?

“Talking about the future is always complicated… It depends on the market.

If a € 100m offer comes up… All players have a price, that's the truth.

You have to choose the right time to sell, ”he swears, adding that sales can also help grow the team.

In the meantime, it's time for action for the new strong man in the Marseille organization chart.

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