Crisis has become a part of day-to-day life at Bordeaux. Fan unrest, player indiscipline and the threat of relegation have become endemic across recent seasons. When Gus Poyet arrived at his press conference on Thursday evening, implosion was again imminent.

“What happened with Gaëtan Laborde is a disgrace,” raged Poyet, “I asked the club not to sell him until we bring in another player. They didn’t listen to me, they let Laborde leave. We arrived at the hotel today at 11.45am, Laborde was not there. We called him, he was at Montpellier. Nobody said anything to us. I will discuss with my agent tomorrow and then make a decision.”

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Laborde, who scored twice in the 3-1 Europa League qualifier first-leg win, was expected to feature in the return against the Ukrainian side Mariupol that night despite his immediate employment having been debated for some weeks. When a journalist pointed this out, Poyet insisted otherwise. “Who said that to you? A Bordeaux representative? I don’t give a fuck about these Bordeaux representatives. They tell you lies and you don’t have the cojones to say the truth.”

After then accusing the club hierarchy of “trying to kill me from behind to make me leave”, Poyet was dismissed the following morning, his comments having “exceeded the limits” according to the club president, Stéphane Martin. Initially, the Bordeaux squad refused to train on Friday, a sign of the support that Poyet’s intense leadership has managed to generate. “They are disturbed,” Martin admitted to L’Équipe, who were even contacted by one player on his arrival at the training ground to ask why they were “attacking” Poyet.

The Uruguayan’s anger over Bordeaux’s uninspiring transfer business and his increasingly frayed relationship with Martin is nothing new. In his first pre-season press conference, Poyet had threatened to leave over what he saw as broken promises and uncertainty amid a proposed takeover. “I am not happy, I was expecting something else,” he explained.

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Poyet directly blamed Nicolas de Tavernost, CEO of M6, the TV channel that has owned Bordeaux since 1998, for their transfer tardiness, even deploying the central midfielder Younousse Sankharé as a striker for their first Europa League qualifier in protest, to which De Tavernost angrily responded: “We can’t let this sort of thing become a regular occurrence. If he hasn’t got my number then Stéphane Martin can give it to him.” At the start of August, Bordeaux and Tottenham were the only clubs in Europe’s top five leagues not to have signed any players. L’Équipe, however, reported that Poyet was also to blame. The club’s scouts had supposedly supplied a 30-man list of recommendations at the start of summer but Poyet rejected them all.

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Poyet’s cantankerous managerial career and acrimonious exits from Brighton and AEK Athens were warnings. Nevertheless, Bordeaux seemed to have emerged under Poyet’s charge from their perpetual crisis, having rocketed from relegation trouble to a miraculous sixth and Europa League qualification under him last season.

Poyet succeeded where his predecessor, Jocelyn Gourvennec, had not in uniting and motivating a fractious squad. The Brazilian contingent led by Malcom – who is now at Barcelona – were criticised for posting Instagram videos of them laughing and joking outside the Stade Matmut Atlantique after a last December; “lacking of maturity, solidarity and respect” according to the club. Gourvannec’s dismissal, not long after an embarrassing Coupe de France loss to semi-pro Granville and a disastrous Europa League qualifying exit to Videoton in the summer, even led club captain Jérémy Toulalan to ask to be released in support of his coach.

Despite Les Girondins’ latest setback, a 2-1 loss at likely relegation battlers Toulouse this Sunday, hope of stability may soon arrive. Rumours that M6 is looking to sell up have persisted for some time and the American consortium GACP is now close to a €100m deal. The sum is twice what Frank McCourt paid for Marseille, a sign of Ligue 1’s burgeoning marketability. An extra €80m on signings over the next three years has been mooted, the reported €17m club-record fee for Fluminense forward Pedro agreed this weekend seemingly being the start.

Facebook Twitter Pinterest Toulouse forward Aaron Leya Iseka scores during the win over Bordeaux. Photograph: Pascal Pavani/AFP/Getty Images

However, while De Tavernost has insisted he will not “just give the keys to the club to people who won’t at least commit the minimum”, the promise of investment is caveated by legitimate fan scepticism. Much of the club’s existing staff would be in jeopardy as GACP look to implement its own hierarchy, the sporting director and former Bordeaux cult hero goalkeeper Ulrich Ramé is already being marginalised, while the prospect of increased TV rights money in 2020 brings the spectre of opportunism and perhaps, so fans speculate, a relatively speedy resale.

Whatever GACP’s plan, it remain ambitious. Thierry Henry has reportedly been contacted about succeeding Poyet while Jürgen Klinsmann, Laurent Blanc and Michael Laudrup have also been shortlisted. Whoever is appointed, those connected with the club simply want to escape perpetual crisis – they can remember little else.

Ligue 1 talking points

• Lyon beat Amiens 2-0 last weekend, a result only sealed by a Memphis Depay free-kick after much profligacy across the front line. The Dutchman was indifferent against Reims on Friday, and as such Lyon were consigned to a 1-0 loss. Still without Nabil Fékir in the wake of the World Cup, Lyon lacked cutting edge. They also looked poor in defence, with Jérémy Morel looking every bit his age and Léo Dubois again failing to impress at right-back. Even as fellow Champions League contenders Marseille and Monaco also looked off the boil, what looks a promising season for Les Gones has the potential to quickly sour if the chairman, Jean-Michel Aulas, refuses to add depth to this side.

• Guingamp took a 1-0 lead into the interval against Paris Saint-Germain but the introduction of Kylian Mbappé changed all of that, with the teenager scoring a brace and taking the match by the scruff of the neck. Of particular interest was his relationship with Neymar, which now seems to be more one of equals, the Brazilian perhaps convinced by Mbappé’s performances at the World Cup. There is a long season ahead and the Champions League will be a better barometer than a Saturday afternoon in Brittany, but if the two can operate with more of this sort of understanding, PSG’s missteps under QSI may finally be a thing of the past.

Facebook Twitter Pinterest Kylian Mbappé celebrates after scoring against Guingamp. Photograph: Fred Tanneau/AFP/Getty Images

• Finally, another nod to Nîmes, who showed their thrilling 4-3 comeback win over Angers may be more than a one-off with a 3-1 home victory over Marseille. The visitors were poor – particularly the summer signing Duje Caleta-Car – but, despite the absence of Rachid Alioui and a poor match by Umut Bozok, Nîmes looked impressive. New signings Moustapha Diallo and Denis Bouanga sparkled behind Renaud Ripart and Sada Thioub. Little was expected of Ripart and Thioub this season but injuries have forced them to the fore and both have scored in Les Crocs’ pair of wins. Their seemingly shallow squad is revealing surprising depth.

Quick guide Ligue 1 results Show Hide Ligue 1 results Reims 1-0 Lyon

Guingamp 1-3 PSG

Amiens 1-2 Montpellier

Caen 1-1 Nice

Dijon 2-0 Nantes

Monaco 0-0 Lille

Rennes 1-0 Angers

Strasbourg 1-1 St Étienne

Toulouse 2-1 Bordeaux

Nîmes 3-1 Marseille

Ligue 1 table