Marseille's summer signing Nayef Aguerd reflected on his team's "frankly incredible" 1-0 win over rivals Paris Saint-Germain in the highly anticipated 'Le Classique' on Monday. The Moroccan centre-back revealed the key reasons that helped Les Olympiens register a remarkable victory over the reigning Ligue 1 holders, who were without the services of several stars.
Aguerd heroics help Marseille beat PSG
Aguerd has started his Marseille with a bang, scoring twice in his first two Ligue 1 appearances for the French outfit after securing a €23 million (£20m/$27m) move from West Ham over the summer. On Monday, Les Olympiens triumphed over Paris Saint-Germain 1-0, thanks to Aguerd's goal in the fifth minute.
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The timing of the fixture was quite strange. The match was initially scheduled to be played on Sunday evening, but adverse weather conditions meant that the clash was postponed a day later to Monday evening. Coincidentally, the game clashed with the 2025 Ballon d'Or ceremony in Paris, where the likes of Desire Doue and Joao Neves watched their PSG team-mate Ousmane Dembele lift the coveted individual award. Several important players from the starting XI were unavailable for Luis Enrique, which saw the Spaniard field a second-string side against Marseille.
Ecstatic Aguerd hails De Zerbi
Speaking to reporters after the game, Aguerd said: “Frankly incredible! I would like to thank the club for facilitating my adaptation. It’s as if I’ve been here for a year. It was a very important match for the fans, at home. We’re very happy. All the credit also goes to the coach and the technical staff. We’ll keep working, I hope we’ll continue on this path. It’s not my job to score, but I’m not going to deprive myself of helping the team. We’re working. There are a lot of repetitions and demands in training. With my size, there are also other very dangerous players, like Leo [Balerdi] and Ben [Pavard]. We’re taking advantage of our weapons and our qualities. It wasn't an easy match. They're a team that plays the ball well, presses, and puts in a lot of intensity. The coach knew how to stop them. It was tough; we had to sacrifice ourselves and make a lot of runs. It worked."
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De Zerbi's troops will face a tricky away fixture against Champions League hopefuls Strasbourg on Friday, before hosting Ajax in Europe's premier club competition next Tuesday.
