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Arsenal loanee Ethan Nwaneri missed the decisive penalty as Marseille were knocked out of the Coupe de France by Toulouse on Wednesday night in France
Marseille boss Habib Beye has defended his decision to elect Ethan Nwaneri as one of OM's penalty takers in their Coupe de France quarter-final defeat to Toulouse.
The French giants drew the match 2-2 before losing 4-3 on spot-kicks at the Stade Velodrome and Nwaneri blasted the decisive kick over the bar.
The teen has had a tough time since departing Arsenal on loan in January and some Marseille supporters have since questioned why Beye allowed the youngster to take the pressure penalty which eventually left the 18-year-old fighting back the tears.
Beye said when pushed for an explanation after experienced Argentina international Leonardo Balerdi also missed from 12-yards: "That's a story for another time.
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"I'm not going to have a big discussion about it because what I like is the personality of a player who decides to go for it. When we discussed it, we were very, very clear about the shooting order.
"And so, they went for it, and I respect that personality. Then there's the story of the game. Unfortunately for Leo and Ethan, they missed.
"They're the ones most affected tonight, but that's how it is. It's unfortunately that this technical skill that, at that moment in the game and at that moment in that series, is simply not mastered."
Nwaneri got off to a dream start at Marseille after finding the target on his debut against Lens. But since then, the move has not come without complications as Roberto De Zerbi, a key figure behind the loan, was relieved of his duties following a 5-0 defeat to PSG in Le Classique last month.
Marseille were also dumped out of the Champions League to Club Brugge, meaning Nwaneri did not get the chance to be registered for the knockout stages.
Former Aston Villa player Beye made it clear he would not judge Nwaneri for missing the target, adding: "It's a technical skill.
"There's been talk of it being a lottery, but I truly believe it's a technical skill, and players who have mastered that skill and feel confident should accept that this order is in place. As for Igor [Paixao], when I asked him, he had cramps and was therefore very tired, which is why he was taken off. Again, it's simply about taking responsibility.
"I believe I never judge a player who misses a penalty because you have to take the responsibility to step up. They took theirs, unfortunately, and tonight, we're behind in that regard."
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