A Marseille player has been suspended for sending a happy birthday message to a teammate online.
According to La Provence, Rayan Hassad was deemed by the club to have delivered his well wishes to former Newcastle and Porto defender Chancel Mbemba in a provocative manner.
Hassad posted a picture of himself and his teammate on his Instagram story, with the caption: “Happy birthday cousin.”
However, the club have taken issue with the use of the term ‘cousin’, which is believed to be a reference to a recent incident between Mbemba and reserve team coach Ali Zarrack.
The Congo international is currently also suspended by Marseille, and reportedly addressed Zarrack as ‘cousin’, leading to him being banished from the group.
The club cited the ‘provocative nature of the message’ of Hassad’s social media post as one of a number of reasons for their decision to suspend him.
He was also alleged to have insulted a fellow teammate, and refused to carry out instructions given to him by a member of staff.
The young midfielder clarified the situation in a statement on his Instagram story, and pointed out that he had been excluded as a precautionary measure.
He wrote: “I was indeed suspended as a precautionary measure by Olympique de Marseille following an Instagram story where I wished a teammate (Chancel Mbemba) a happy birthday.
“I have to clarify that at no moment did I wish to cause harm to my club or to my management. It was a simple birthday message, as I usually do with other teammates.
“If I have hurt anyone, I apologise, but know that this was never my intention. Have a good day everyone.”
Hassad signed his first professional contract with Marseille in 2022 and currently has a year left on his current deal.
He is yet to make a first-team appearance for the Ligue 1 side, featuring their youth and reserve teams, where he has recently found himself playing alongside Mbemba.
Despite being a regular for Les Olympiens as they reached the semi-finals of the Europa League last season, Mbemba has found himself surplus to requirements under new manager Roberto De Zerbi.
The 30-year-old was told to train with the reserves whilst looking for a move, which is where the incident that saw him suspended is said to have taken place.
Marseille get their league season underway away to Brest on Saturday afternoon.
News Summary:
- Marseille star suspended for wishing teammate happy birthday in ‘provocative manner’
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