Aurier's insults 'pitiful': Blanc

Feb 15, 2016 - 6:54 PM Paris Saint-Germain coach Laurent Blanc has branded the homophobic remarks of his Ivorian defender Serge Aurier as "pitiful."

Aurier appeared in a controversial video circulated on social media, in which he described his coach Laurent Blanc as "une fiotte" which is a pejorative term for a homosexual, and also criticised his teammates, such as Angel Di Maria or Zlatan Ibrahimovic.

In a press conference held on the eve of PSG's UEFA Champions League first leg clash against Chelsea in the knockout stage on Tuesday at the Parc des Princes, Blanc said "I took it very badly. One is allowed to have opinions but I committed myself to getting him two years ago."

"This is how he repays me? It is pitiful. He has punished himself and the club. He'll suffer the consequences," Blanc added.

The French coach admitted that Aurier's behaviour had a minimal distraction effect on his teammates, but added that his players are ready to face Chelsea in the Champions League for the third season in a row.

"In this generation people spend a lot of time having to apologise," Laurent Blanc underlined.

As for Aurier's continuity with the Club after he was temporarily suspended, Blanc stressed that PSG will take the right decision, and said that he will directly resolve any personal problems with the player.

Earlier, PSG decided to suspend the player after the video incident, and eventually, Aurier was ruled out from his team's group training on Sunday.

In a video on PSG TV, Aurier retracted his comments by making a public apology to everyone offended by the video.

"I made a big mistake, I am here to say sorry to the coach, the club and my team-mates, and to the supporters because they are the most important people," he said.

On the other hand, PSG president Nasser Al-Khelaifi said in a statement that "I will not let anybody put the club in danger and divert us from our objectives, starting with the game against Chelsea that our supporters are really looking forward to."

Source: AAP