Undefeated at home but diminished by injuries, Olympique de Marseille welcomes a PSG confident of its strength and irresistible this season on the road.
The perfume that emanates from a Classic always has a particular smell. A mixture of passion, excitement and tension. These meetings between Olympique de Marseille and Paris Saint-Germain belong to their own dimension, a rivalry built from scratch but which over time has found its place through its symbolic dimension more than through its sporting interest.
It must be said that on the field in recent years, the duel has cruelly lacked suspense, the Parisians having imposed their superiority too regularly, to the point of no longer having lost in League 1 against the Marseille rival for almost four years. A trend that the Marseillais would like to reverse but the circumstances still seem contrary to them after a painful international truce.
Who in defense for OM?
“We are not going to cry about our fate. People in the squad will have their chance”, put Jean-Louis Gasset into perspective at a press conference on Friday. The Marseille coach knows, however, that he will have to invent something when facing PSG. Indeed, against Chile, Clauss did not have the evening he hoped for. In front of his supporters, the Marseille full-back injured his hamstring alone, thus putting an end to the match against PSG and several weeks of competition. A hard blow but not the only one forOM who will also have to do without Onana, Sarr and Meïté.
It is even the entire Marseille defensive sector which appears weakened since Gigot and Balerdi are uncertain. The first returned away from the group and we do not know the degree of commitment he can tolerate while the second remained in care. Enough to give the Marseille technician headaches when hosting PSG and their offensive armada. “When there is more talent in front of you, if you want to achieve an achievement, you have to find solutions in other places. And there, we are talking about collective. Being much more concentrated, much more aggressive, much more skillful with the ball, make the opponent run in sequence, be effective at the slightest opportunity”, he indicated. “I am confident in the players who will be there. They all have a responsibility with the OM jersey”, for his part assured Pau Lopez. An essential confidence to overcome the leader, and which will be fueled by the fervor of the Vélodrome where OM are undefeated this season in all competitions. A Vélodrome which has been waiting for a victory against PSG in the Championship for 13 long years now.
A smooth recovery
If OM bandages its wounded and is forced to tinker, PSG approaches the meeting with much less pressure and problems. Symbol of ambient serenity, Luis Enrique granted two days of rest to its squad and another additional day for its internationals. A gesture appreciated by a workforce which has little time to breathe and responds to a long-term logic. The former coach knows that the freshness recovered there will be beneficial for the final sprint with in 10 days the reception of FC Barcelona in the quarter-final first leg of the Champions League.
A light approach but not sloppy, the Spanish technician respecting his opponent too much to allow himself such frivolity. Nevertheless, his team’s twelve points lead over his runner-up from Brest allows him to be more generous and to take care of the organizations. So, it is not certain that he takes risks with Marquinhos. Affected in the Achilles tendon in mid-February, the Brazilian captain is uncertain and with the upcoming deadlines, he could be protected. This is not the case for Asensio. The Spaniard is operational again and should take advantage of Barcola’s injury to regain playing time. If the stakes are low, Luis Enrique will be keen that his men maintain Parisian invincibility away from home this season in the League 1.
This Sunday at the Vélodrome, a series should therefore come to an end. It remains to be seen which one.
The 27th day of Ligue 1 closes with a duel between Olympique de Marseille and Paris Saint-Germain. This meeting will take place from 8:45 p.m., near the Vélodrome stadium, in Marseille.
The meeting of the 27th day of Ligue 1 between Olympique de Marseille and Paris Saint-Germain will be broadcast live and exclusively on Prime 1.
The meeting between Jean-Louis Gasset’s Olympique de Marseille and Luis Enrique’s Paris Saint-Germain will be available in streaming on the Prime Video platform.
Betclic: Olympique de Marseille: 3.30 / Draw: 3.88 / Paris Saint-Germain: 2.20
Parions Sport: Olympique de Marseille: 3.50 / Draw: 4.00 / Paris Saint-Germain: 2.00
Winamax: Olympique de Marseille: 3.25 / Draw: 3.95 / Paris Saint-Germain: 2.00
Olympique de Marseille: Pau Lopez – Mbemba, Balerdi, Kondogbia, Merlin – Harit, Ounahi, Veretout – Ndiaye, Moumbagna, Aubameyang.
Paris Saint-Germain: Donnarumma – Hakimi, Beraldo, Hernandez, Nuno Mendes – Ruiz, Vitinha, Lee – Dembélé, MbappéAsensio.