Marseille without summer signings, Richard leaves door open to free agent

Olympique de Marseille is the only club competing in European competition to have signed no players during the 2024 summer transfer window, a situation imposed by joint restrictions from the DNCG and UEFA in response to an unsustainable wage bill.

President Stéphane Richard nevertheless left the door slightly ajar for the signing of a free agent. “Sign free agents? In the immediate term, I think it will be very complicated, for the same reasons. But I cannot say no 100% to this question,” he said, while specifying the sine qua non condition: “We could only recruit a free agent with the agreement of the DNCG. Any recruitment is subject to prior authorization.”

Richard also closed the door to further departures: “We have a squad that should allow us to compete in this season’s competitions, even if we have lost depth.” He also acknowledged the need for a structural change of direction: “I say today that we can no longer have a strategy that consists solely of selling.” On the origins of the crisis, Longoria’s successor was direct: “Too much volume, salaries that were too high, gigantic salaries… There was a real problem. The DNCG played its role.”

The recent sale of Quinten Timber to Crystal Palace for 20 million euros freed up a monthly salary estimated at 320,000 euros, which could constitute the necessary margin to convince the DNCG to authorize a reinforcement. The sporting context makes the urgency palpable: Bruno Genesio’s midfield finds itself doubly weakened after the simultaneous injuries of Geoffrey Kondogbia and Tochukwu Nnadi, sustained during the trip to Monaco. The trail leading to Tanguy Ndombele, without a club, circulates insistently in this context.

It remains to be seen whether the margin freed up by Timber’s departure will be sufficient to obtain the green light from the financial watchdog, without compromising the budgetary balance of a club attempting to rebuild on sounder foundations.