Marseille in meltdown: Adrien Rabiot, Roberto De Zerbi and the post-match punch-up that has threatened to destroy the French giants' dressing room

De Zerbi's first season in charge at the Stade Velodrome was typically turbulent but nonetheless encouraging, with the outspoken Italian leading OM back into the Champions League via a creditable runners-up finish in Ligue 1. Given the club backed the manager in the market during the summer, making a plethora of exciting signings, including Angel Gomes, Facundo Medina and Igor Paixao, there was actual talk of Marseille being able to mount a legitimate title challenge this time around to perennial champions Paris Saint-Germain.

However, optimism has given way to outrage after the abysmal season-opening loss at Roazhon Park. Despite seeing their hosts reduced to 10 men following the dismissal of Abdelhamid Ait Boudlal just after the half-hour mark, Marseille failed dismally to break down Rennes and were hit by a stunning sucker-punch in the 91st minute, when an unmarked Ludovic Blas raced away to score the game's only goal.

As if that weren't bad enough, all hell then broke loose when Marseille's disgruntled players returned to the visiting dressing room.

The precise nature of the clashes remains a subject of great debate. However, journalists waiting in the nearby mixed zone claim to have heard a major commotion in the Marseille dressing room allegedly caused by a confrontation between Adrien Rabiot and Jonathan Rowe, who some sources claim actually struck his team-mate after being accused of a lack of effort.

A disgusted De Zerbi also reportedly told his players, "The others beat us on the pitch, and we come in here and fight among ourselves. You know what that means? That we have small balls. In Marseille, we need to have big ones."

According to Ici Provence, De Zerbi also warned his warring players, "This is the last time this will happen." And the full significance of that statement would only become clear afterwards.

Although both Rabiot and Rowe were promptly suspended for their role in the dressing-room dust-up, meaning neither player was allowed to train with their team-mates on Monday morning, it was thought that they would be quickly welcomed back into the fold - most likely after making a donation to the club's foundation as a form of punishment.

However, according to RTL, De Zerbi made it clear to sporting director Mehdi Benatia, who had helped the coach break up the scuffle, and president Pablo Longoria that he no longer wanted either player at the club. As a result, Marseille placed both Rabiot and Rowe on the transfer list on Monday evening "due to unacceptable behaviour in the dressing room after the match against Stade Rennais FC, in consultation with the coaching staff and in accordance with the club's internal code of conduct."

Even though Rowe only completed a permanent move to Marseille during the summer, the forward - who scored the winning goal for England Under-21s in their European Championship final back in June - appears to have no issue with moving on and has apparently already agreed to join Serie A side Bologna.

However, Rabiot and his representatives are less than impressed with how the entire episode has been handled. The France international's mother and agent, Veronique, is said to be unhappy with Benatia's lack of communication and clarity on the matter, as well as reports that De Zerbi cited a perceived "lack of commitment" as another reason for getting rid of Rabiot.

It's certainly surprising that the Marseille boss is seemingly so keen to sell the midfielder, given Rabiot was one of the team's most influential players last season and considered such a key figure within the squad.

As Rabiot's lawyer, Romuald Palao, told RMC Sport, "It's incomprehensible. Adrien has been extremely involved in the Marseille project for almost a year, and he’s very attached to it. Adrien thought that when he came back after the weekend, everyone would have moved on and resumed training. So, when we learned that he was on the transfer list, we were clearly stunned."

Palao has also accused Marseille of using Rabiot's altercation with Rowe as an excuse for offloading the 30-year-old.

"When you want to drown your dog, you say it has rabies," he said. "So, yes, we have doubts over what the club has communicated. What happened in the dressing room, happened. But when the club says that the player's behaviour has changed [recently], that's false. It's completely false!

"So indeed, there is a story that is a bit contrived. And then they use Friday's episode to oust Adrien. Why? I don't know. You have to ask them, you have to ask them the question."

Palao also wants to know why Marseille are apparently demanding €15 million (£13m/$17.5m) for Rabiot, who is already being linked with a move to Galatasaray.

"You can't indicate that you want to part ways with a player and then come and demand mind-boggling sums," the lawyer added. "€15m is huge."

However, Longoria reacted angrily to the suggestion that the club were somehow guilty of mistreating Rabiot, stating that the midfielder had been involved in "an event of a gravity and violence that is extreme, something unheard of".

"Do you think that I, as president of Olympique de Marseille, am happy to arrive at this type of situation with one of last season’s most important players, someone I presented as an example? Honestly, as a club, we are victims of the situation. We are enduring it," Longoria told AFP. "We had to take a decision after an event that went beyond the acceptable limits in a football club, as in any organisation.

"It's a decision that protects the institution, that protects the season. Roberto De Zerbi has been coaching for 13 years, Mehdi Benatia has been in top-level football since he was 22, and I have worked in professional football for 20 years. We have enough experience between us to say we had never seen something like this in a dressing room."

What effect the affair will have on Marseille's season remains to be seen. We'll definitely know more after Saturday's clash with Paris FC.  However, what we can say right now is that, even by the standards of one of the most chaotic clubs in world football, this is an extraordinary episode in OM's history.

A dreadful display in Rennes on Friday didn't just cost them three points, it's going to cost them two players too.