Manchester United’s Eric Bailly has revealed the personal connection that helped seal his recent loan move to Olympique de Marseille.
The Ivory Coast international secured the one-year move to France towards the end of August after it was clear he was down the pecking order under Erik ten Hag.
Speaking about the move, Bailly revealed to Le 10 Sport how he was impressed with Marseille’s president Pablo Longoria’s knowledge of him.
The defender stated “when he called, he told me about my time at Villarreal, about all the things I did there.”
“He told me secrets that I didn’t expect. I said to myself: I don’t know him, but how does he know all this?”
“Then he explained that he was close friends with my former coach Marcelino. The conversation was smooth and easy. It made me want to come even more.”
It is not the only thing Bailly has revealed since his loan move, as earlier this week he lashed out against United’s bias towards English players under previous management.
Unable to gain the trust of either Ole Gunnar Solskjaer or Ralf Rangnick, he was regularly overlooked in favour of not just English players, but also Victor Lindelof and Raphael Varane.
Dissatisfied with his playing time at United, he said “I don’t want to play every now and then. I want to do it every week and feel important. I want to get my confidence back.”
Bailly’s grievances have also previously spilled onto social media as he commented on a post asking for him to play.
But his time in France has perhaps not started as he expected with only two starts in the five fixtures since his move.
With a seemingly higher opinion of himself than his managers, the centre back will have to win over the opinion of Igor Tudor before he receives the consistent playing time he demands.
