PSG's Aurier renews his apologies to Laurent Blanc

On Friday evening, Canal+ Foot broadcast a new episode of Detective Mathoux with Serge Aurier as guest. The right‑back, now clubless since his departure from Persepolis in the Iranian top division, used the show to revisit the Periscope affair and presented a staged scene orchestrated by the production.

A controversial staging

In a theatrical moment, he read an apology letter: “Dear coach, if you only knew how I regret… forgive me,” addressed to Laurent Blanc. Journalist Hervé Mathoux had moistened his eyes with an onion to heighten the emotion.

This staging showed Aurier’s sense of humour, but sparked scepticism from some, including former athlete turned sports consultant Héloïse Kane. She criticised the gesture, stating: “Why put a piece back in the machine ten years later?”

Aurier reunites with Blanc, ten years after the Periscope

The Periscope affair dates back ten years, when Aurier had called his coach Laurent Blanc a “wimp”. His Paris Saint‑Germain teammate, goalkeeper Salvatore Sirigu, had also been disparaged.

At the time, PSG had sentenced him to play with the CFA. However, he returned to the first‑team squad for the first‑leg Champions League quarter‑final against Manchester City on 6 April 2016 at the Parc des Princes.

Aurier revisits the Periscope affair in a Canal+ production

Thus, Aurier’s attempt to make amends collides with mixed reactions, reminding that public apologies remain controversial. The debate shows that the memory of the scandal persists ten years later.