Of all the reasons a player has ever had to leave a club, the story behind Marcelo departing Lyon stands as one of the most peculiar of all time.
It’s fair to say Les Gones didn’t get off to the greatest of starts this season. They played within themselves and failed to produce anything close to their brilliant best. However, as the campaign has gone on, their form has somewhat improved as they’ve clawed their way up the table.
They currently stand in eighth place in the Ligue 1 table. A shot at European football still just about flickers alight. But the squad that’s got them into this position isn’t the same one that started the campaign.
After the club struggled to deal with a “lack of respect, rudeness and arrogance”, they transfer-listed several players. As per French outlet RMC Sport, the club’s Director of Sport, Juninho, and manager, Peter Bosz, struggled to deal with attitude problems in the dressing room.
Read more: Lyon transfer list multiple key players who have “lack of respect, rudeness and arrogance”
And one man who took his role as the ‘squad clown’ too seriously, lost his place at the club.
Why Lyon got rid of Marcelo
Throughout his career, the 34-year-old has proved himself as a top-quality defender. He’s travelled around the world and adapted to every league he’s played in.
But his sense of humour, however, wasn’t appreciated by some members of his now-former club. Unfortunately, what might go down a storm in some dressing rooms certainly doesn’t go down well in others, as Marcelo abruptly found out.
Every comedian has a gimmick that they become attached to. Peter Kay has his misheard song lyrics, Seth MacFarlane has his amusing back-and-forths with Family Guy’s Stewie and Brian, while Ricky Gervais has a reputation for leaving an audience shocked to their core. But the Brazilian footballer has become synonymous with a different style of humour.
L’Equipe have reported that the Brazilian loved to fart in the locker room. In fact, he did it far too constantly for Juninho’s liking. The player would break wind and leave his teammates in hysterics.
According to the same report, his incessant flatulence resulted in the club dropping him to the second team before they eventually carted him off to Bordeaux.
Les Girondins have since been relegated, although at least Marcelo has got back to playing semi-regular football again.
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