Posted on October 26, 2021 at 5.30 p.m. by Arthur Montagne
Confined to the sidelines since the start of the season, Duje Caleta-Car has made a noticeable return to OM's starting lineup for a few meetings. What revive the future of the Croatian who had refused to leave this summer and whose aborted transfer had made Marseille cringe.
Despite a very agitated transfer window and a recruitment which saw the arrival of 11 new players , the OM was not completely satisfied with its summer. And for good reason, sales were eagerly awaited and did not take place. Like that of Duje Caleta-Car. The Croatian international, who saw OM reject an offer from Liverpool estimated at 26M € last January, this time refused to leave when the Marseille club was ready to accept the proposals of Newcastle and Wolverhampton who seemed willing to let go around 15M € to recruit the colossus of Šibenik. The refusal of Duje Caleta-Car to leave would have annoyed the Marseille management who subsequently found themselves in economic difficulty to complete the arrival of Amine Harit . This lively transfer window has also had sporting repercussions since until September 30, the Croatian international had played only one meeting, namely the trip to Angers for which Jorge Sampaoli had made a large turnover. Against LOSC , Duje Caleta-Car was even substituted at half-time. But after being dismissed by his coach, the Croatian is back in force in the starting XI of OM .
Everything is restarted for Caleta-Car
< p> Indeed, against all odds, Duje Caleta-Car has just completed three tenures in a row, against Lorient , Lazio and PSG . And the former ax of Salzburg seems to have quickly dispelled the doubts about his level since OM did not concede any goal in the game during these three meetings, alone < strong> Armand Laurienté , from the penalty spot, managed to deceive Pau Lopez . Result, alongside William Saliba , Duje Caleta-Car has a chance to follow up as Jorge Sampaoli explains. “He came into the team when we felt he was in peak mental, physical and footballing shape. We'll see how he is, but it's important to get players like him back in such a busy schedule. We will need everyone ”, launches the Argentinian technician at a press conference on the sidelines of the match against OGC Nice , before adding a layer on the rise of his defender: “We discussed with him. The talent he has. We did specific work with him, with a lot of videos. He put himself at the level of his partners. We picked up a player with international experience, that's a good thing, but we know that football goes very quickly, sometimes players are in good shape, sometimes not. The entourage sometimes brings distraction, that's why there has to be a healthy and internal competition. This applies to all players. We must remember that the most important thing is to win for the club. “Under contract at OM until 2023, Duje Caleta-Car is therefore back on the front of the stage. It remains to be seen whether this will allow OM to highlight its defender with a view to a possible sale this yesterday or next summer. Unless the Croatian international is back for good in Marseille.