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PSG coach threatens rival over Makelele slur
PARIS (AFP) - Paris Saint-Germain coach Antoine Kombouare said that Christian Gourcuff "deserves a smack in the mouth", after the Lorient manager claimed PSG midfielder Claude Makelele was "past it".
The Parisians were held to a 1-1 draw at Lorient on Saturday, during which former Real Madrid and Chelsea man Makelele was fortunate to avoid a red card for a foul on Sigamary Diarra in the first half.
Gourcuff, the father of Bordeaux star Yoann, declared afterwards that Makelele was "past it and has no place on a football pitch", prompting an extraordinary outburst from Kombouare.
"You must respect the man (Makelele) and his career," Kombouare told RMC radio on Monday.
"Someone needs to stub Christian Gourcuff's cigar out. I'm very annoyed. You can say what you like about the player but it's forbidden to attack the man. Christian Gourcuff should talk about football and stop thinking he's someone else.
"I get the impression that this guy is bitter. Is he worried about something? Excuse me for these words, but in my opinion a guy like this deserves a smack in the mouth.
"I'm really annoyed and I'm making a stand about what Gourcuff said. Furthermore, I've left him two messages and he still hasn't called me back.
"I can understand what he said at the end of the match, that Claude Makelele committed a lot of fouls, that sometimes he pushed things to the limit and that he deserved a red card for what he did to Sigamary Diarra. No problems. When you're angry you react like that, I speak from experience.
"But I do not accept him attacking the integrity of a player, my player. When he says that he's past it and has no place on a football pitch, I say 'stop'. He is disrespectful, has gone too far and will have to answer to me. There are things I cannot accept."
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