French Club suspends player over birthday message to African teammate

French Club, Olympique de Marseille has suspended 18-year-old Rayan Hassad after he wished his teammate, Congolese defender Chancel Mbemba, a happy birthday on Instagram. The club’s management took the action as a precautionary measure following the social media post.

The suspension comes after Mbemba was already sidelined the previous week for alleged poor behavior towards a club official during a training session. Mbemba, who had a strong performance at the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations, was involved in an incident that contributed to his own suspension.

The situation escalated when Hassad posted “happy birthday cousin” on his Instagram account. Marseille’s management interpreted the term “cousin” as a subtle jab related to Mbemba’s suspension, which led to additional scrutiny of Hassad’s actions.

According to La Provence, the post was seen as the final straw in a series of issues with Hassad, prompting the club to suspend him.

In response, Hassad issued an apology on Instagram. He stated, “I was indeed suspended as a precautionary measure by Olympique de Marseille following an Instagram story where I wished a teammate a happy birthday. I would like to clarify that at no time did I want to cause harm to my club and its management. If I hurt someone, I apologise, but know that this was never my intention.”

Despite the apology, Olympique de Marseille has not yet provided details on the duration or specific conditions of Hassad’s suspension