What: French Ligue 1
Who: Marseille v Lyon
When: Sunday 28th October, 2012, at 20:00 UK Time
Where: Stade Velodrome, Marseille, France
Baup’s Men Lose Momentum
Having made such an impressive start to the new season, Marseille were finally knocked off top spot in Ligue 1 last weekend, seemingly inevitably, by fierce rivals Paris Saint-Germain. Given the relative spending (or lack of in Marseille’s case) of the two teams this summer, that is hardly reason for criticism, but the way in which Baup’s side lost at newly promoted Troyes was hardly the way to relinquish first place.
Having been knocked off their perch, the challenge for Marseille now is to show that they can keep pace with the Parisians and give them a genuine fight for the title. Baup’s men will have to do so without Andre-Pierre Gignac in the short term as well, a blow after their top goalscorer was ruled out for a month and a half. At the start of the season, the notion that an injury to Gignac would be a blow to Marseille would have been fanciful, but such has been his dramatic upturn in form under Baup that actually, the side will miss him.
Yet on paper at least, Marseille have plenty of options. The Ayew brothers are capable of finding the net, while Loic Remy will have a chance to re-establish himself as the team’s main forward. Marseille have just come off the back of a tough trip to Germany to face Borussia Monchengladbach, where despite playing well the side were comfortably beaten in the end and Remy missed two good chances after being restored to the centre forward role in Gignac’s absence.
Solid Start for Les Gones
Remi Garde’s team have made an assured start to the Ligue 1 campaign, with a home defeat to Bordeaux the only blip on their copybook. Lyon have been enterprising going forward, as they usually are, but are more reliable defensively than they have been in the recent past. Fabian Monzon and Milan Bisevac have made a useful contribution to that effort, showing the money made from the sales of Aly Cissokho, Kim Kallstrom and Hugo Lloris has been well spent. Garde is doing a fine job managing the transition at the Stade Gerland with the purse strings tight as a new stadium is built, although Lyon are not as convincing when playing a 4-4-2 as they have been with a 4-5-1.
Nonetheless, so far this season Lyon appear to be one of the teams best placed to challenge PSG. Les Gones have been competitive, without being particularly spectacular and have more gears to slip into. Now Garde’s side have the chance in this match to overtake Marseille and close in on Carlo Ancelotti’s men at the top.
Although both teams had Thursday night Europa League action to contend with, there are few more strenuous tasks than coping with the high pressure game of Marcelo Bielsa’s Athletic Bilbao, and Lyon came through their test impressively, with a 2-1 victory courtesy of a late Jimmy Briand winner. Garde will hope that will give his men the impetus going into this short trip down to Marseille to leapfrog their rivals in the Ligue 1 table.
Recent form
Marseille:
Marseille 2-2 PSG (07/10; Ligue 1)
Troyes 1-0 Marseille (21/10; Ligue 1)
Gladbach 2–0 Marseille (25/10; Europa League)
Lyon:
Lorient 1-1 Lyon (07/10; Ligue 1)
Lyon 1-0 Brest (21/10; Ligue 1)
Lyon 2–1 Athletic Bilbao (25/10; Europa League)
Key absences
Marseille: Leyti N’Diaye; Joey Barton (suspended); Souleymane Diawara; Andre-Pierre Gignac
Lyon: Michel Bastos; Clement Grenier; Yoann Gourcuff
Players to watch
Marseille – Loic Remy: Remy, after an inconsistent year not helped by injury, has an opportunity to find his feet again and settle into a goalscoring rhythm. Baup will hope for nothing less after a dismal attacking performance against Troyes. Remy’s pace and finishing ability should give Lyon’s defence plenty to worry about, but he is yet to score a goal this season. Such a run is bound to come to an end sooner rather than later and this weekend presents the ideal opportunity to get his campaign up and running.
Lyon – Lisandro Lopez: Lopez struck in midweek against Athletic Bilbao and will be a key part of the Lyon attack here. He will be the main link between the Lyon midfield and centre forward Gomis. Les Gones will need him to contribute defensively to take advantage of any weakness in the centre of Marseille’s midfield, as well as provide that key out ball which prevents Gomis from being too isolated. And his ability to notch crucial goals could be decisive.
Match Prediction
With Marseille still short in central midfield, Lyon can boss possession in this game. They will have to do so without talented youngster Clement Grenier and Michel Bastos, both out through injury, but with Gueida Fofana and Maxime Gonalons, Lyon can take control of this part of the pitch and establish authority.
Lopez and Jimmy Briand can stretch Marseille’s full backs and cause the home team all kinds of problems. Lyon can be very good in the final third and with the number of potential goalscorers in their ranks Marseille will do well to keep them at bay.
Baup’s side can be expected to counter attack clinically, using the pace of the Ayews and the creativity of Morgan Amalfitano and Mathieu Valbuena to pierce holes in the Lyon defence, which can still be suspect at times. However, it is the away side which looks to have more goals in them. Marseille 1-2 Lyon.
Betting on Marseille v Lyon? Don’t miss our betting preview.
