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Since Olympique de Marseille's pre-season training camp in the Netherlands, Amine Gouiri has chosen his side: that of the boss. Invited on the After Foot show on RMC this Thursday, August 7, the 26-year-old Algerian striker laid out a personal roadmap without ambiguity, between claiming leadership and showing confidence in his new coach Bruno Genesio. A speech expected in a club shaken by a turbulent off-season.
"I have to be the leader"
With 8 goals in 22 Ligue 1 appearances last season, Gouiri finished as Marseille's third top scorer behind Mason Greenwood and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang.
The numbers speak for him. With 8 goals in 22 Ligue 1 appearances last season, Gouiri finished as Marseille's third top scorer behind Mason Greenwood and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang. Problem: both men are no longer there. Greenwood has left the ship, Aubameyang too. Result: the international with 11 caps finds himself propelled, almost despite himself, to the rank of offensive reference.
"I want to say yes," he replied when asked about the attacking leadership question. Before qualifying, lucid about the reality of the transfer market: "For now, I'm here, under contract. I'm not the only striker, others will come, but yes, I have to be the leader."
No incendiary statement, then, but a calm taking of responsibility. At 26, the man who arrived in Marseille in January 2025 from Rennes knows the suit fits him. It remains to convince over time, in a squad that the management is still trying to reshape three weeks before the resumption.
Genesio, the rediscovered link
The other major theme of the interview is Bruno Genesio. The new Marseille coach and Gouiri know each other by heart: one managed the other at Lyon, then at Rennes. Three common seasons, trust built over time, and a shared tactical language that could accelerate the integration of Genesio's system in Marseille.
"The coach knows me very well, he knows how to use me, and I know exactly what he expects," the striker slipped, without going into the details of the schemes. A precious connection when you know that the OM version 2026-2027 will have to digest a preparation truncated by departures and late arrivals.
The two men find themselves in a radically different context from their Lyon and Rennes adventures. Marseille is another pressure, another media exposure, and a demand for immediate results. For Genesio, the adherence of a key figure like Gouiri is an asset that money cannot buy.
A tense transfer window, intact ambitions
Gouiri did not dodge the question of the financial difficulties weighing on the Marseille club. "I heard that the door was wide open for everyone," he admitted, repeating a phrase that has circulated in the press in recent weeks. Before tempering: "But the atmosphere in the group is good, we work seriously."
The Dutch training camp is precisely meant to bond what remains of the core. Several key players are on their way out, others have just arrived or will arrive soon. OM for the 2026-2027 season still looks like a construction site. Yet, the objective remains the same: to secure a European place. "We know what the club represents, we know what the supporters expect. We're not going to hide," the Algerian insisted.
This displayed ambition contrasts with the prevailing discourse, often alarmist, surrounding the club since the start of the summer. Gouiri, for his part, seems almost soothed by Genesio's presence and by the prospect of an expanded role. As if the surrounding chaos finally offered him the space he had been seeking since his arrival.
The Bilbao test in sight
OM plays a preparation match against Athletic Bilbao in the coming days. It will be the first real indicator of the progress of the Genesio project, and the first big oral exam for Gouiri in his new role. Against a Basque defense known for its rigor, the Marseille striker will have the opportunity to show that his words are not just words thrown into a Dutch microphone.
The resumption of Ligue 1 is approaching. Marseille no longer has time to doubt, and neither does Amine Gouiri.