The LFP have ruled that the August 22 Mediterranean derby between Nice and Marseille be replayed on neutral ground and behind closed doors, goalballlive.com has learnt.
Recall that Nice, the hosts, were leading by a lone goal in the match which was 75 minutes old with 15 minutes left to play before the match was marred by mayhem.
It was reported that Marseille’s Dimitri Payet fell after being struck by a bottle as he went to take a corner. Payet threw a bottle back into the crowd as teammates came across to remonstrate with Nice fans behind the goal.
As a result of the foregoing, some supporters streamed onto the pitch and a melee ensued involving players, staff, fans, and stewards.
It was so bad that Marseille coach, Jorge Sampaoli, was restrained by members of his own staff to avoid making the scuffle much complicated.
But even with that, the match was stopped for more than one hour and was eventually abandoned shortly before midnight after Marseille players refused to return to the pitch.
In farcical scenes, the Nice players came back out and the referee placed the ball by the corner flag where the game had been stopped, before blowing his whistle.
After series of investigations by the disciplinary commission of the league, the LFP has now waded into the situation.
In its ruling, Nice have been docked two Ligue 1 points, although one is suspended. A one-match ban has been handed out to Marseille's Dimitri Payet while a two-match ban was placed on his teammate, Alvaro Gonzalez for hitting balls into the stands.
Also, Marseille assistant coach Pablo Fernandez was suspended for the remainder of the season for punching a Nice fan.
While Nice were ordered to play three games behind closed doors.
This article was most recently revised and updated 3 years ago
