It's being claimed Florian Thauvin burst into tears upon learning that Olympique Marseille had chosen to sell him.

Liberation says Thauvin was reluctant to leave OM, hoping to build his career with the French giants.

But ahead of his move to Newcastle United, Thauvin was shocked to be informed in April by OM officials that he would be cashed in.

"At the sporting level, I dreamed of seeing Thauvin succeed with OM. With his character and qualities, I still say that he is a player for a club like this. He absolutely wanted to succeed with this jersey.

"We saw what he did to get to OM. Deep down, there is a sense of disappointment not to have exploded in Marseille," said former OM coach Elie Baup.