Luis Fernandez has claimed Marcelo Bielsa will not stay at Marseille beyond this season as the Argentine has been "disappointed" by the Ligue 1 club's broken promises.
Bielsa, 59, arrived at the Stade Velodrome last summer, and has kept a side that finished out of the top five last season in contention for Champions League qualification this term.
However, shortly after signing his one-year deal last summer, the former Athletic Bilbao boss openly stated he had had nothing to do with the club's transfer policy, and then criticised club president Vincent Labrune, saying he had "made promises he knew he couldn't keep."
The issue was pushed into the background when OM recorded eight straight wins to surge to the top of the table, but with the side having failed to triumph in their last four league games and the end of the season approaching, Bielsa's future is again the subject of debate.
Former PSG and Athletic coach Fernandez, 55, told sport365 he does not see Bielsa continuing his work with Marseille.
"I don't think so. With him, when you make a commitment, you have to stick to it," said Fernandez, who acted as an intermediary to during Bielsa's arrival in France.
"He said that at the start of the season: he did not get what he had been promised, and he was disappointed. It's difficult to coach Marseille. Ask Didier Deschamps, who came out of his three years at Marseille quite damaged."
Bielsa had reportedly drawn up a list of players he wanted Marseille to buy, including Benjamin Stambouli and Toby Alderweireld, but was provided with none of them, while Morgan Amalfitano, whom Bielsa wanted to keep, was allowed to leave.
Speaking to media this week, Bielsa insisted he felt Labrune's support.
"I feel the president is behind me, and I am not at all worried about the development of my work. Everyone here knows that as long as the president doesn't fire you, he backs you," Bielsa, whose team are third in the Ligue 1 table, four points off top spot, said.
"I know full well the size of OM, and I respect the way in which the link between a coach and an institution is made. It's not the coach who says he wants to sign a contract. It's the club that says to the coach: we want to work with you."