Unai Emery appeared to provoke Marseille manager Jorge Sampaoli during a heated incident after he was sent off in Villarreal's pre-season friendly defeat on Saturday.
Marseille took the lead at the Orange Velodrome in the first half after Fer Nino attempted to clear the immediate threat from a Dimitri Payet free-kick.
However, the 20-year-old Villarreal forward's attempted clearance looped over Sergio Asenjo and landed in the back of the net.
Villarreal's hope of mounting a successful comeback was dealt a major blow early in the second half after former Tottenham defender Juan Foyth was sent off.
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Foyth's dismissal had a knock-on effect as Villarreal head coach Emery was also sent off by the referee.
However, Emery didn't leave the dugout quietly as he could be seen angrily shouting in the direction of Sampaoli and using repeated hand gestures.
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Sampaoli, unsurprisingly, tried to confront the former Arsenal manager and he had to be held back by the Marseille staff to avoid a potential touchline altercation from breaking out.
Marseille would double their lead thanks to a sensational strike from Payet in the 58th minute.
Alberto Moreno pulled one back for Villarreal in the 88th minute, but Villarreal were condemned to a 2-1 defeat to Marseille.
Villarreal's loss to Marseille was the second defeat of their pre-season campaign, with the first coming in a 3-2 win for Valencia last month.
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The La Liga club were also held to a 2-2 draw against Lyon and a 0-0 draw against Levante in their pre-season schedule.
Emery, who was sacked by Arsenal in 2019, succeeded Javier Calleja as Villarreal manager in 2020.
The former Paris Saint-Germain boss led Villarreal to a seventh-placed finish in La Liga last season, as well as securing the Europa League title with a sensational win over Manchester United.
Villarreal will play Leicester City and Leeds United ahead of their Super Cup showdown with Champions League holders Chelsea on 11th August.
Featured Image Credit: TwitterTopics: Marseille, Unai Emery, Football, Ligue 1, Villarreal, Spain, France, La Liga