Diaby debut for Marseille delayed

Injury hit former Arsenal midfielder Abou Diaby is still at least three weeks away from making his Marseille debut.

Diaby was released by Arsenal in the summer after a string of injuries over his nine-year stay at the club prevented him from featuring consistently for the first team.

The 29-year-old joined Marseille in July 2015 and was in line to feature for the first time against Caen in the Coupe de France on Sunday, but head coach Michel says the former France international, who has suffered from a hamstring injury since joining the club, is lacking match fitness.

"Diaby needs three weeks of training with the group, so we did not succeed with him," Michel told reporters. "He is in the recovery phase.

"He is not ready and I hope this is the last time I answer a question about it."

Marseille, who also signed former Arsenal and Chelsea midfielder Lassana Diarra in the summer, currently sit 10th in the Ligue 1 table.