Four straight defeats have darkened Marseille’s season, and the Vélodrome will receive Paris Saint-Germain on Sunday with Bruno Genesio accepting that the responsibility starts in his own dugout.
Speaking before Le Classique, the Marseille coach said his side have fallen well short of the level required since the start of the campaign. Rather than blame individuals or hide behind circumstances, the 60-year-old placed himself at the centre of the club’s search for answers.
“A coach’s most important job is to get the best from the squad available to him,” Genesio said. “At the moment, we have not managed that, because the results have been very insufficient.”
Genesio takes responsibility for Marseille run
Marseille have lost their last four matches, with recurring mistakes and similar patterns in performances leaving Genesio concerned. He said external factors can help explain part of a difficult spell, but cannot account for a sequence of defeats on their own.
“It is self-examination,” he said. “It would be too easy to hide or point to outside reasons. They may explain certain things, but they are not enough to explain four consecutive losses.
“My own impact has not been sufficient. When the same errors keep happening and the matches look strangely alike, it means you have not found every solution needed to change things.”
The coach nevertheless insisted that he will not walk away from the challenge. He endured a similarly harsh period with Lille last season, when his team went through eight defeats and two draws across January and February, and intends to fight for a turnaround in Marseille.
Unity demanded before PSG visit
Genesio believes the response from his players will be decisive as Marseille attempt to halt the slide against Luis Enrique’s PSG. He stressed that the squad and staff remain united despite the pressure surrounding the club.
“The players and I are together. That is the most important thing if we are going to get through this storm,” he said. “These are the moments when you see coaches, players and, simply, people. Difficult and negative experiences are where character is built and strengthened.”
Marseille will hope that Sunday night brings a familiar remedy. Last season, OM beat PSG 2-1 at the Vélodrome shortly after a midweek Champions League defeat to Real Madrid. Marquinhos’ own goal in the fifth minute helped set Marseille on their way that evening.
Genesio will now look to Igor Paixao and his teammates to produce another response against Paris — and ensure that, by the end of Sunday night, the four-match losing run is over.
