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Why selling Loic Remy to Tottenham this month would be a disaster for Marseille
The 24-year-old striker is wanted at White Hart Lane, but he is simply too valuable to the Provence outfit to allow him to leave for anything short of an astronomical sum
11 Jan 2012 13:36:00
Gettyimages
ANALYSIS
By Robin Bairner | French Football Editor
Loic Remy might not have been entirely at the fore as Marseille destroyed Caen 3-0 in the Coupe de la Ligue on Tuesday night, but he showed enough striking instinct to get himself on the scoresheet against the ramshackle Normandy side.
While Mathieu Valbuena grabbed a brace and along with it the headlines, it was Remy’s contribution midway through the first half that effectively killed the game off as a contest, as he made the score 2-0 in remarkably simple circumstances. Morgan Amalfitano’s pass did the hard work, and the poor positioning of rookie home goalkeeper Thomas Bosmel allowed the France striker a simple chance to power the ball home.
The former Lyon youth player showed few signs of being disturbed by the revelation made only hours earlier by Tottenham manager Harry Redknapp that he’d love to take him to White Hart Late.
“He's a good player,” Redknapp said. “He's a player we like and there's interest there.”
The Spurs boss was keen to stress, however, that there was nothing more to the story than that.
Perhaps this was why Remy was able to play to his usual standard at the Stade Michel-d’Ornano, but more likely it is because he knows there is little chance of him leaving his port-city home this January.
A multi-dimensional striker, the 24-year-old has been central to the revival in Marseille’s fortunes since a woeful start to the campaign left them rock bottom after six matches. Not only is he quick and has a keen eye for goal, drawing comparisons with Thierry Henry for his willingness to drift into wide areas, but he has also proven himself a superb threat in the air, greedily finishing a number of crosses presented to him by Mathieu Valbuena.
At times he has carried OM’s goal-scoring threat alone, and now the Stade Velodrome club simply cannot afford to release him.
Beyond Remy, Marseille have no reliable striking option. Brandao is set to return from his loan spell in Brazil, but for all the ex-Shakhtar Donetsk player’s industry, he is hopelessly erratic in front of goal. Additionally, Andre-Pierre Gignac, last season's big-money flop signing from Toulouse, is presently injured and not expected to return until February, while Andre and Jordan Ayew are both on Africa Cup of Nations duty for the next month, and though both are talented, they are young and prone to bouts of inconsistency.
Rather than deplete their offensive panel, les Phoceens need to add to it. That was certainly the plan in the summer, when they plotted to reinvest the transfer fee gained by selling Lucho Gonzalez in an additional centre forward. The Argentine, however, could not be sold, and no striker arrived.
Even if Roman Pavlyuchenko did join OM in a part-exchange deal, as has been rumoured, Marseille would be taking a gamble with the odds stacked against them; the Russian may have been prolific in his homeland, but he does not even boast a record of scoring one-in-three in the Premier League. Remy, meanwhile, is proven in Ligue 1, and boasts a better scoring ratio, despite only regularly being deployed in a central position this season.
The stakes are high for Marseille; it could be the difference between Champions League football – a surge has seen them rise to within five points of the top three – and being forced to slog it out in the Europa League.
As a result, no gamble is likely unless Spurs should place a simply irresistible offer in front of the Provence side’s board. However, the English outfit may well be able to try their luck with more success in the summer, hoping that Remy does not enjoy the explosive Euro 2012 that he is certainly capable of.
Follow Robin Bairner on
By Robin Bairner | French Football Editor
Loic Remy might not have been entirely at the fore as Marseille destroyed Caen 3-0 in the Coupe de la Ligue on Tuesday night, but he showed enough striking instinct to get himself on the scoresheet against the ramshackle Normandy side.
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While Mathieu Valbuena grabbed a brace and along with it the headlines, it was Remy’s contribution midway through the first half that effectively killed the game off as a contest, as he made the score 2-0 in remarkably simple circumstances. Morgan Amalfitano’s pass did the hard work, and the poor positioning of rookie home goalkeeper Thomas Bosmel allowed the France striker a simple chance to power the ball home.
 |
REMY'S CONTRIBUTION TO MARSEILLE 2011-12 |
| LIGUE 1 | |
| Aug 6 |
 vs. Sochaux (H) 2-2 |
| Aug 14 |
vs. Auxerre (A) 2-2 |
| Sep 21 |
vs. Evian (H) 2-0 |
| Oct 2 |  vs. Brest (H) 1-1 |
| Oct 29 |
vs. Dijon (A) 3-2 |
| Nov 6 |
vs. Nice (H) 2-0 |
| Nov 27 |
vs. PSG (H) 3-0 |
| Dec 20 | vs. Nancy (A) 3-1 |
| CHAMPIONS LEAGUE | |
| Sep 28 | vs. Dortmund (H) 3-0 |
| Dec 6 | vs. Dortmund (A) 3-2 |
| COUPE DE LA LIGUE | |
| Oct 25 | vs. Lens (H) 4-0 |
| Jan 10 | vs. Caen (A) 3-0 |
| TROPHEE DES CHAMPIONS | |
| Jul 27 | vs. Lille (N) 5-4 |
“He's a good player,” Redknapp said. “He's a player we like and there's interest there.”
The Spurs boss was keen to stress, however, that there was nothing more to the story than that.
Perhaps this was why Remy was able to play to his usual standard at the Stade Michel-d’Ornano, but more likely it is because he knows there is little chance of him leaving his port-city home this January.
A multi-dimensional striker, the 24-year-old has been central to the revival in Marseille’s fortunes since a woeful start to the campaign left them rock bottom after six matches. Not only is he quick and has a keen eye for goal, drawing comparisons with Thierry Henry for his willingness to drift into wide areas, but he has also proven himself a superb threat in the air, greedily finishing a number of crosses presented to him by Mathieu Valbuena.
At times he has carried OM’s goal-scoring threat alone, and now the Stade Velodrome club simply cannot afford to release him.
Beyond Remy, Marseille have no reliable striking option. Brandao is set to return from his loan spell in Brazil, but for all the ex-Shakhtar Donetsk player’s industry, he is hopelessly erratic in front of goal. Additionally, Andre-Pierre Gignac, last season's big-money flop signing from Toulouse, is presently injured and not expected to return until February, while Andre and Jordan Ayew are both on Africa Cup of Nations duty for the next month, and though both are talented, they are young and prone to bouts of inconsistency.
Rather than deplete their offensive panel, les Phoceens need to add to it. That was certainly the plan in the summer, when they plotted to reinvest the transfer fee gained by selling Lucho Gonzalez in an additional centre forward. The Argentine, however, could not be sold, and no striker arrived.
| REMY V PAVLYUCHENKO SINCE 2009-10 |
 |
 |
| 95 |
LEAGUE APPS. |
48 |
| 37 |
LEAGUE GOALS |
15 |
| 0.39 |
GOALS PER GAME |
0.31 |
Even if Roman Pavlyuchenko did join OM in a part-exchange deal, as has been rumoured, Marseille would be taking a gamble with the odds stacked against them; the Russian may have been prolific in his homeland, but he does not even boast a record of scoring one-in-three in the Premier League. Remy, meanwhile, is proven in Ligue 1, and boasts a better scoring ratio, despite only regularly being deployed in a central position this season.
The stakes are high for Marseille; it could be the difference between Champions League football – a surge has seen them rise to within five points of the top three – and being forced to slog it out in the Europa League.
As a result, no gamble is likely unless Spurs should place a simply irresistible offer in front of the Provence side’s board. However, the English outfit may well be able to try their luck with more success in the summer, hoping that Remy does not enjoy the explosive Euro 2012 that he is certainly capable of.
Follow Robin Bairner on
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| Open an account with Sportingbet today and get up to £50 in free bets! |
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| Sign up with William Hill for a free bet up to £25 |
|
| Sign up with bet365 for a free bet up to £200 |
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