Europa League: Marseille suspend defender Patrice Evra for kicking fan before Vitoria Guimaraes clash

Paris: Patrice Evra has been suspended by Olympique de Marseille following a scuffle with a supporter before Thursday’s Europa League game at Vitoria Guimaraes, the Ligue 1 club said on Friday. [caption id=“attachment_4193073” align=“alignleft” width=“380”] Marseille’s French defender Patrice Evra is escorted off the pitch by teammates Portuguese defender Rolando and Brazilian defender Doria after an argument with supporters. AFP[/caption] OM said in a statement that the France international had been summoned to an interview that will lead to disciplinary action. Video footage showed a Marseille player aiming a kick at a group of fans during a scuffle behind one of the goals but the club did not mention the kick. France fullback Evra has been regularly targeted by Marseille fans since joining from Juventus during the close season and his poor performances have led coach Rudi Garcia to drop him from the starting line-up. “As a professional and experienced player, Patrice Evra could not react in such an inappropriate manner,” the statement said after acknowledging that Evra has been provoked by OM fans who insulted him. “Pat has experience and he must not react. It’s obvious,” Garcia said. “Patrice is more than experienced and we can’t respond, obviously, to insults as low as they might be and as incredible as they might be because they come from one of our supporters.”