Marseille handed stadium sanction

Marseille have been punished for the crowd violence
which flared during the home game with Lyon on
September 20.

Marseille have been ordered to close two sections of their Stade
Velodrome home for the Ligue 1 clash with Angers on Sunday.

The sanction imposed by the Ligue de Football Professionnel
(LFP) comes following the crowd trouble which marred the
recent game with Lyon, during which the players were forced
from the field after missiles, including glass bottles, were
thrown from the stands.

The closure of the north and south enclosures, where the club's
'ultra' supporters congregate, will remain in place until October
15 when the LFP will meet again to decide whether further
measures are required.

"In view of the extreme seriousness of the facts - I remind you
that glass bottles were launched and the match was interrupted
twice - the disciplinary committee has decided to completely
close two corners of the Stade Velodrome with immediate
effect," said disciplinary commission president Sebastien
Deneux.

"This is a precautionary measure pending the meeting on
October 15, where final decisions will be taken."

The Lyon game, which, having been disrupted with the visitors
leading 1-0, ended in a 1-1 draw thanks to a Karim Rekik
equaliser, was a highly charged encounter due largely to the
return to Marseille of former midfielder Mathieu Valbuena.

Valbuena was booed throughout with Marseille's Romain
Alessandrini then red-carded for a heavy challenge on the
France international.