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The small world of Provençal football is wondering this Monday about the Regional 2 Mediterranean League match that ended in River’s 22-1 victory for AC Arles against FC Septèmes on Sunday. Especially since the result could impact the race for the climb. Each in their own way, the two clubs claim to be in good faith.
Arles-Septèmes was not a rugby or handball match, but a football match. Contrary to what the more than lopsided scoreboard would suggest, 22-1. An amazing and very big success that caused a smell of scandal in Provence this Monday.
With this almost unreal victory, the Arlesians, coached by Michel Estevan, spent Sunday night at the top of Group C of the Regional 2 Mediterranean League. Thanks, of course, to a better goal difference than now former leaders FC Martigues.
The result of the match in “reserve”
The latter, the first impacted by this river difference between the two teams during this penultimate day, casts doubt on this result. Alerted by this marker and the multiple reactions caused, the Mediterranean League has opened an investigation into this match. The result of which, announced by Arles on their social networks without showing the score, remains for the moment in “reserve” on the League site.
AC Arles (ex-Arles Avignon, previously in Ligue 1 in 2010-11) is said to be “serein”, and one of six members affirms “that there is no contact between the two clubs in the previous days the match”. In addition, several educators were in the stands of the stadium and, according to them, no arrangement was made. They simply saw a “completely demobilized team”. The officials did not write a report at the end of the meeting, nothing seemed problematic to them.
An Arles official: “Why would we have done that?”
To explain this crazy result, the Arles club wields several reasons:
– For a match played at 3:00 p.m., the team from Septèmes arrived at 2:30 p.m. and warmed up for just 10 minutes.
– Septèmes formed a team more than bis, with a 50-year-old reserve team coach forced to play on the pitch and no seasoned goalkeeper, who didn’t even have gloves.
– The team from the suburbs of Marseille had already withdrawn from the championship, as they had been relegated to the district.
“Score 22 goals, if it’s arranged, it shows, it becomes laughable… Why would we have done that?”, defends an Arles coach, contacted by RMC Sport. Whose team was defeated 4-1 at Septèmes in the first leg. “It’s very difficult to go play there, it’s hot, tense. Our players were scared”, he continues about the first round.
“Absolutely nothing was prepared. You have to be stupid to make these kinds of mistakes”, Salah Nasri, president of Septèmes
In their quest to be promoted to Regional 1, the team from Arles, already leading 8-1 at half-time and still playing at their best, had to win this match by as much difference as possible. Since his competitor in the climb, Martigues, will face in the last good day a team from Olympique Novais and whose goal difference is… -95.
The president of Septèmes: “And again, we should have scored 30 goals”
“The club is completely demobilized. (…) We went there with the reserve, with a 50-year-old coach in the field. We weren’t even veteran level. And still, we should have gotten 30 goals”, he assured. Salah Nasri, president of Septemes, this Monday at L’Equipe. He was not prepared at all. He would have to be dumb to make these kinds of mistakes. He left me the right to attack anyone who dares to say that he was fixed.”
And Nasri continues on the alarming situation of his club: “In the previous game, two of our players had a fight and were sent off. There is a general collapse. I even wonder if we should not stop the older ones and focus on the young ones. the question of the future of the club”.
On Monday, RMC Sport contacted Didier Dulcamara, president of Olympique Barbentanais, a small club from Vaucluse, sixth in this Group C of Regional 2 and opponent of the two clubs earlier in the season. According to him, the Arles club “is in the hands of serious people, who had no prior interest in buying this type of match.”
At Martigues we eagerly await the outcome of the investigation
“Although in our divisions, it often happens that we are approached for this kind of thing, but we will never do it on our part!” Dulcamara raises, more harshly about the Septèmes club that is “in another world”. “It’s a complicated club, we had problems there… And given the mentality, given that they’re going downhill next season, I’m not surprised they’re leaving.”
Accompanied in the afternoon, the president of the Martigues club, Alain Nersessian, eagerly awaits the outcome of the investigation carried out by the Mediterranean League against “a rare and simply incredible marker”. “It’s not about having suspicions or doubts. But the championship will be played on goal average and we had our destiny in hand. That’s why I’m surprised by the score of the game,” he admits. A difference of 21 goals at this level. It’s weird and just amazing. It’s a real issue brought up to the League, which seems to take hold of it elsewhere.
“I easily believe in the fact that Sepèmes was demobilized, that not all the players were there… but I want to believe in sporting fairness. Sepèmes wanted to play so as not to lose, for a matter of dignity. But is it better to take 22 than lose? ?, asks Nersessian. Today, FC Martigues is in difficulty and I want there to be no doubts about the match, so as not to have any regrets. And I want to know quickly.”