Marseille boss reacts to Nwaneri penalty miss and reveals why Arsenal youngster took decisive spot-kick | Football

Marseille head coach Habib Beye jumped to Ethan Nwaneri’s defence after the forward’s penalty miss against Toulouse, praising the youngster for having the ‘personality’ to step up in the shootout.

Beye’s side enjoyed a dream start to Wednesday’s thrilling Coupe de France quarter-final clash as Mason Greenwood opened the scoring from the spot inside only two minutes.

Igor Paixao restored Marseille’s advantage after Yann Gboho had levelled for Toulouse, only for the visitors the equalise again through Charlie Cresswell on the hour-mark.

The two sides could not be separated for the remaining 30 minutes, setting the stage for a nail-biting penalty shootout at the Stade Velodrome, with a place in this year’s semi-finals on the line.

Aron Donnum made no mistake with Toulouse’s opening spot-kick before ex-Manchester United attacker Greenwood returned the favour with a cool strike beyond Geronimo Rulli.

But after Gboho, Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang and Djibril Sidibe all succeeded, there were a pair of misses from Leonardo Balerdi and Cristian Casseres as the nervousness ratcheted up inside the stadium.

Nayef Aguerd and Pape Demba Diop both scored their penalties meaning it came down to Nwaneri to hold his nerve from 12 yards, but the 18-year-old skied his effort over the crossbar to send Toulouse through to the semi-finals.

A teary Nwaneri, who joined Marseille on loan from Arsenal in January, appeared inconsolable as team-mates and coaching staff joined in putting an arm around his shoulder to show their support.

‘That’s a story for another time,’ Beye said when asked about Marseille’s order of penalty takers as the club squandered a shot at their first piece of silverware since 2012.

‘I’m not going to have a big discussion about it because what I like is the personality of a player who decides to go for it.

‘When we discussed it, we were very, very clear about the shooting order. And so, they went for it, and I respect that personality.

‘Then there’s the story of the game. Unfortunately for Leo [Balerdi] and Ethan [Nwaneri], they missed.’

Beye said it was ‘unfortunate’ that Balerdi and Nwaneri were not able to execute the ‘technical skill’ as they would have hoped in the moment.

‘They’re the ones most affected tonight, but that’s how it is,’ he added.

‘It’s simply unfortunate that this technical skill that, at that moment in the game and at that moment in the competition, was not mastered.’

There was some confusion as to why Marseille winger Paixao was not used in the shootout after his earlier goal – but Beye confirmed the Brazilian was experiencing ‘cramps’ and fatigue.

‘There’s been talk of it being a lottery, but I truly believe it’s a technical skill,’ Beye continued.

‘Players who have mastered that skill and feel confident should accept that this order is in place.

‘As for Igor [Paixao], when I asked him, he had cramps and was therefore very tired, which is why he was taken off.’

The Marseille manager went on: ‘It’s simply about taking responsibility.

‘I believe I never judge a player who misses a penalty because you have to take the responsibility to step up.

‘They took theirs and unfortunately we missed out in that regard.’

Marseille’s last trophy win came 16 years ago when Loic Remy’s goalscoring exploits inspired the club to win the now defunct Coupe de la Ligue.

On Marseille’s dream of a first title since 2012 vanishing, Beye said: ‘The disappointment is as great as the hopes that were placed in us for this match and the Coupe de France campaign.

‘When you have the opportunity in two matches to reach a final… you had to win this one first.

‘So, the disappointment is as great as the hopes that were placed in us, and we have to accept it. That’s what I told my players.

‘In this situation, we have to look ahead, face the challenge, and accept the anger, the disappointment, and the sadness of our supporters who were with us throughout the match and during the penalty shootout.’

Wednesday’s other quarter-final was also decided on penalties, with Nice getting the better of Lorient in a tense shootout.

A day earlier, Strasbourg secured their place in the semi-finals with a 2-1 win over last year’s runners-up Reims.

Lyon and Lens will battle it out for the last remaining semi-final spot at Groupama Stadium this evening.

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