Lyon-Marseille abandoned after Payet hit on head with bottle

The Ligue 1 game between Lyon and Marseille was abandoned on Sunday after Dimitri Payet was hit on the head by a water bottle thrown from the stands.

Marseille forward Payet fell to the ground in the fifth minute of the Ligue 1 match at Lyon’s Groupama Stadium, with both teams promptly sent to the dressing room by referee Ruddy Buquet.

Almost two hours after initially being suspended, it was announced the match would not resume.

Payet, a France international, was about to take a corner when he was hit by the object and left the pitch with an ice pack on his head.

A stadium announcement initially said the game would resume, but warned a further incident would lead to an abandonment.

Lyon players had briefly returned to the pitch to warm-up ahead of the proposed resumption, but Marseille’s players remained in their changing room before the match was eventually called off.

“The referee believes safety conditions are not met,” said the stadium announcer.

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During the suspension, the Ligue de Football Professionnel (LFP) released a statement in which they said they “regret” the regional authorities’ intention to resume the match.

They also said former West Ham player Payet had been the subject of “discriminatory insults” after he was hit by the bottle.

The disciplinary commission of the LFP will hold a meeting on Monday.

The incident is the latest in a number of Ligue 1 matches marred by crowd trouble this season.

Nice were docked two points, one of them suspended, after serious incidents during their game against Marseille, whose players clashed with home fans who pelted them with missiles and stormed onto the pitch in August.

The match was rescheduled and replayed in October at a neutral location without fans.

The start of the second half of the northern derby between RC Lens and Lille in September was delayed by around half an hour after rival fans threw objects at each other before people ran onto the pitch, prompting riot police and stewards to intervene.

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