Marseille sporting director reveals failed Wesley Fofana and Kevin De Bruyne approaches

Speaking on RMC Sport show After Foot, Olympique de Marseille sporting director Medhi Benatia has revealed that he failed in approaches to sign Kevin De Bruyne (34) and Wesley Fofana (24) over the summer.

Marseille’s interest in Fofana has been no secret. The Chelsea defender revealed last season that OM had made an approach back in the summer of 2024, too. However, he said that his focus remained on succeeding at Chelsea, where he is once again earning minutes, following another injury-hit campaign.

Fofana is from Marseille and so Benatia said that he made an attempt, but in vain. “I tried Fofana from Chelsea, too… I said, ‘He has had quite a few injuries, will the Marseille context, his home, could it suit [him]?'” said Benatia.

There was also an ambitious attempt to try and sign De Bruyne, who was a free agent in the summer following the expiry of his deal at Manchester City.

However, Benatia said that he arrived too late, with the Belgian already in “advanced” talks with Napoli at the time that he tried to lure him to the Vélodrome.

GFFN | Luke Entwistle