Der Zakarian-Latour, the clash

Following the revelation made by Bertrand Latour, of the supposed existence of a triple bonus offered by Michel Der Zakarian to his Montpellier players in the event of a victory over Nantes this Friday, the journalist, the two men spoke through the media.

“ No double bonus for the Montpellier residents after the victory against Reims. On the other hand, triple bonus if Montpellier wins against Nantes. Why will you tell me? Because Michel Der Zakarian, the Montpellier coach, is not at all on good terms with the Nantes leaders, Franck and Waldemar Kita. So the best way to motivate the players and hope that Der Zakarian beats his former employers, gentlemen Kita, triple bonus for the players this Friday against Nantes, 9 p.m. » It is in these terms that Bertrand Latour revealed a little scoop Tuesday evening on the channel The Team. A statement that did not go unanswered.

The day after this revelation, Michel Der Zakarian was present at a press conference, two days before the famous match of the 31st day of Ligue 1 which will be played Friday evening at La Mosson between Montpellier and Nantes. And the coach wanted to firmly deny the journalist’s allegations. “II wanted to say something about what came out on social networks with our friend Bertrand Latour, from L’Équipe. What he’s saying is nonsense. It is not Der Zakarian who decides the match bonuses. It is the president who decides if he wants to overtake. It’s the president who pays, it’s not me who decides on match bonuses. (…) Your colleague, he should know things well before speaking. »

“A gray area”

A response to which Bertrand Latour reacted immediately. “ Mr. Der Zakarian, I spoke to him this morning on the phone. He wanted to call me. I would have liked him to find my number when I defended him with a story with Thierry Henry, but he didn’t have my number. He found it in the meantime. So I wasn’t surprised by his statement at the press conference since he told me the same thing in slightly more flowery words on the phone. I stand by what I said yesterday. We do not arrive on a television set to create a buzz, which I also said to President (Laurent) Nicollin, and to create panic in Montpellier. »

And the journalist concludes: “ What I said, I stand by it, I take responsibility for it. I also understand that it doesn’t make them happy, because perhaps the people of Nantes will use it too. But I am not an employee at Montpellier Sporting Club. There I didn’t score any points in the job interview. (…) I don’t know if the incident is closed, but there you go. (…) There is a gray area in the press release. » A final remark highlighting that in his declaration, Michel Der Zakarian did not deny the existence of this famous triple bonus, but indicated that he was not at the initiative.