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Preview: Lille welcome Marseille as UCL race heats up
As LOSC Lille welcome Olympique de Marseille to the Stade Pierre-Mauroy, the two Ligue 1 McDonald's sides are preparing for a match with huge implications in the race for the Champions League.
Limited Dogues look to rise to the challenge
Lille have shown grit in the extreme of late, winning four of five in the league as they determinedly shake off the frustration of their Champions League elimination. However, for this affair they'll have to make do without the suspended Bafodé Diakité. The versatile defender was sent off in Angers last weekend, and while Bruno Génésio's side still managed to record a 2-0 victory, a visit from free-scoring Marseille presents a far-sterner challenge.
This was underscored by captain Benjamin André, who said of his teammate: "Bafo' has been very consistent and very good throughout the season. We'll have to do without him for this match, we have no choice. Aïssa Mandi will be ready, he has experience and is very good." It's true that Mandi is a capable defender, but he and Alexsandro will have to be sharp indeed to handle Marseille's attackers.
𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗯𝗼𝘀𝘀 🫡🔵⚪️ pic.twitter.com/Pwg9q4V44t
— Olympique de Marseille 🇬🇧 🇺🇸 (@OM_English) May 1, 2025
Can Gouiri keep firing?
It's rare that January signings prove decisive in improving a team's fortunes, but outside of Mika Biereth's record-setting season for AS Monaco, it's safe to say that no player who changed clubs in January has impressed as much as Amine Gouiri. A product of Lyon's academy, he also spent time at OGC Nice and Stade Rennais before signing for l'OM in February. With seven goals in nine starts -- including a hat trick last week -- he's one of the league's form attackers, and is another reason for Génésio to be worried about the absence of Diakité.
This is also true as the visitors now have roughly a full complement of players from which Roberto de Zerbi can choose, with the likes of Léonardo Balerdi and Pierre-Emile Højberg having returned from injury. Both are expected to be in the eleven, as OM play a more conservative 4-3-3 (as opposed to a more freewheeling 3-4-1-2), knowing that a draw will be enough to see them regain second place.
This is true even if De Zerbi is disinclined to agree, saying, "One point wouldn't be enough. Lille is a good team with good results in Ligue 1, the Champions League, and for several years now. Just defending and looking for a draw wouldn't be right. We're only focusing on ourselves; we're not thinking about Paris, who have lost their last two matches, or Nice, who just won."
Predicted lineups:
LOSC Lille (4-3-3): Chevalier; Meunier, Mandi, Alexandro, Ismaily; André, Bentaleb (or Bouaddi), Gomes; Haraldsson, David, Fernandez-Pardo
Olympique de Marseille (4-3-3): Rulli; Murillo, Balerdi, Kondogbia, Garcia; Bennacer (or Rongier), Højberg, Rabiot; Greenwood, Gouiri, Henrique
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