Belhanda Questions Thauvin’s Decision Not to Take the Penalty Against OM

Last weekend, Lens defeated Olympique de Marseille 2-1. However, Florian Thauvin revealed after the match that Odsonne Edouard took the penalty that led to Lens’ equalizer because he didn’t want to take it against his former club. This behavior puzzled former Montpellier player Younès Belhanda.

“When you play for a club and they pay you, you do everything to win. I think he was the designated penalty taker by his coach. If he didn’t want to be the one, he should have said: ‘It’s Marseille, let Edouard take the penalty, that way there’s no controversy.’ But in the interview afterward, when he said ‘I didn’t want to take the penalty,’ if you’re being paid by Lens, you play for that club, and you need to take it. He probably saw Valbuena in the past when he was whistled for his return to Marseille and anticipated that reaction,” he stated in an interview with RMC Sport.