Valentin Rongier (31), who joined Stade Rennais from Olympique de Marseille last summer, feels that the Provence-based club “disrespected” him regarding his time on the Canebière.
“You can clearly say there was a lack of respect,” he said in an interview with the media outlet Le Carré. “When, for six years, you’ve always given your all, never raised your voice, represented the club’s values, and often spoken to the press when things weren’t going well… It’s my job, of course, but I would have liked a different send-off. Overnight, I was no longer given any airtime or media coverage.”
Having joined OM in 2019, Rongier has gradually established himself as a key player for the Marseille side. Over six seasons, the FC Nantes academy graduate has made 196 appearances, scoring six goals and providing 11 assists, whilst wearing the captain’s armband under Igor Tudor.
With a year remaining on his contract last June, Rongier was offered a contract extension, the terms of which he did not find to his liking, leading him to reject the deal and hasten his move to the Breton club, where he has signed a three-year contract.
Having started every one of the 29 matches he has played since the start of the season, Rongier has bounced back brilliantly with Les Rouge et Noir.
“Fortunately, at my age I’ve been able to put things into perspective, but if it had happened to me five years earlier… it would have really hurt. Now I have my wife, my little one, and I can still do my job,” he says optimistically.