Christopher Jullien encouraged Celtic teammate Olivier Ntcham to leave the club after feeling the French midfielder was in need of a new challenge away from Glasgow.
The defender admitted his midfielder contemporary had started to ‘stagnate’ in Scotland and encouraged him to join Ligue 1 Marseille in the January window.
Ntcham made a winning start to life in the South of France, coming on as a substitute as L’OM triumphed in the Coupe de France round of 64 with a 2-0 win over second tier Auxerre.
His performance drew praise from interim boss Nasser Larguet after a chaotic return to his homeland that saw former manager Andre Villas Boas sensationally quit over the transfer.
But Jullien insists it was the right move to make, telling newspaper La Provence: "He had taken a step forward in Glasgow but he was starting to stagnate, because he remains in Scotland.
"He needed a new challenge. I see him succeeding at OM, he has everything he needs to achieve this.
"This stage will be able to make him grow even more. He has always had the qualities to aim for a major championship like Ligue 1."
The creative midfielder had limited game time under Neil Lennon this season and a fee has been agreed should Marseille decide to purchase him permanently at the end of the campaign.
Ntcham could now be in line for his league debut on Sunday when Marseille face Bordeaux away from home.
Larguet hinted he could be in line for a start in that game, telling the press after the midweek cup win: “I want to launch him into this team little by little so that it brings us all the qualities we know he possesses in him.
“This was a good exercise in giving him playing time because he hasn’t featured for some time at Celtic.”
