Marseille is making more noise off the pitch than on it these days.
Following a rocky summer marked by the shock resignation of coach Marcelo Bielsa, the nine-time champion has only managed two wins in its first six league games to trail league leader Paris Saint-Germain by seven points.
Marseille players stood up to the challenge of Lyon despite having one less man on the pitch for the entire second-half in Sunday's 1-1 draw, but their fine collective performance was overshadowed by the incidents that marred the game at the Velodrome.
The match was suspended for about 20 minutes in the second half after fans threw projectiles including glass bottles onto the pitch. Marseille striker Michy Batshuayi was hit by a fire bomb but escaped uninjured and police forces were deployed in front of the Marseille kop before the match restarted.
Marseille fans also caused widespread indignation in French media after they hung an effigy of former player Mathieu Valbuena, who was booed during the whole game on his return to the southern club.
With the 2016 European Championship to be held in France next year, Sports secretary Thierry Braillard called for tougher security checks in stadiums.
''This is unacceptable, sports should be festive, this is not war,'' Braillard told TV channel iTELE on Monday. ''You can't show such a bad image when you want to organize big (sporting) events. Indisputably, security procedures failed at the Stade Velodrome.''
There was no official reaction from Marseille, which now faces sanctions from the French league authorities and travels to Toulouse on Wednesday.
Here are other things to know ahead of this week's matches:
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PRESIDENTS CLASH
It was not just the fans who vented their anger in Marseille. Club presidents Vincent Labrune and Jean-Michel Aulas also reignited their war of words.
After defender Karim Rekik headed in Marseille's equalizer in the 68th minute, Labrune claimed that Lyon benefited from complacent referring and questioned the decision to award Alexandre Lacazette the penalty he converted in the first half to put the visitors ahead.
Aulas' anwer to his Marseille counterpart? ''I told Labrune he is a muppet and that he won't last in football as long as he thinks he will.''
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IBRAHIMOVIC LOOKING FOR GOALS
Still unbeaten after six games, PSG is standing at the top of the table but its recent displays have been quite disappointing.
In comparison to the club's impressive firepower, the back to back draws against Bordeaux and Reims have highlighted the team's lack of rhythm. Forward Zlatan Ibrahimovic's current struggles were also striking at Reims.
In what is likely to be his final season at PSG, Ibrahimovic has played only two league games so far - against Monaco and Reims - and was never a threat during the 2-0 win against his former club Malmo in the Champions League. Ibrahimovic has yet to score a goal and questions over his ability to get back to his physical best are rising ahead of Tuesday's match against Guingamp.
PSG coach Laurent Blanc said he will be patient with his star player, though.
''He had a great preseason, but he was stopped short by an injury. That's all part of a season and there's no need to worry,'' Blanc said. ''Anyone can get injured. Now he needs to play a few games to get his rhythm back.''
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DESPERATLY SEEKING STRIKER
While Anthony Martial is delighting Manchester United fans with his spectacular Premier League goals, the teenager's departure from Monaco has left a big offensive void at the Principality club.
Monaco has won just two of its first six matches, scoring six goals and conceding eight.
''We don't have big strikers used to scoring lots of goals during a single season,'' Monaco coach Leonardo Jardim lamented.
The pressure is now on forwards Guido Carrillo and Stephan El Shaarawy, who joined the club this summer and have yet to score. The trip to struggling Montpellier on Thursday looks like the perfect occasion to rectify that.
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