The individual who threw a bottle at Marseille’s Dimitri Payet during a Ligue 1 game at Lyon on Sunday has been handed a six-month suspended prison sentence.
The Lyon Criminal Court also recommended the supporter be banned from the Groupama Stadium for five years.
Upon the decision, the fan’s lawyer commented: “I remain firmly convinced that it was not his wish to hurt Dimitri Payet. It was not either his wish to cause the interruption of the match.
“The stadium ban is legitimate, he had unsportsmanlike behavior, which must be banned from the stadiums, continues the council. He knew it, he accepts it.”
The match was initially suspended after just five minutes of action, with Payet having been struck on the head as he went to take a corner.
Referee Ruddy Buquet then abandoned the game 100 minutes after it was paused, with the Marseille players refusing to re-enter the pitch from their dressing room.
The LFP, French football’s governing body, “strongly condemn(ed) the violent aggression” and labelled it a “cowardly attack” on Payet, the Marseille captain. The organisation said it was holding an emergency meeting on Monday.
After the match, Payet admitted he may be “afraid to take corners” again.
This is not the first instance of crowd trouble in Ligue 1, nor is it the first match to be abandoned.
The LFP urged that “these serious and repeated incidents are destroying the image of the league in France and internationally”.
