Marseille will be looking to recover from yet another dismal night in the Champions League when they take on a struggling Strasbourg side in Friday's Ligue 1 clash.
The hosts do not have much to boast about themselves as they also need to bounce back from a lowly defeat to Reims last weekend.
Match preview
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With Thierry Laurey absent from the touchline after returning a positive coronavirus test, the Strasbourg manager was not at the Stade Auguste-Delaune to witness his side slip to defeat in an all-too familiar sight this season.
Reims quickly established a foothold in the game thanks to an own goal from Bingourou Kamara before Wout Faes powered home a header, with Ludovic Ajorque's penalty proving to be no more than a mere consolation for a Strasbourg side who occupy a spot in the relegation places heading into gameweek 10.
Les Coureurs did manage to record an emphatic 3-0 victory over Brest a couple of weeks ago, but Laurey's men have since returned to losing ways and only boast two wins from their nine top-flight matches this season - with the other seven all ending in defeat for Strasbourg.
Laurey will certainly welcome the international break as he looks to reassess Strasbourg's situation heading into Christmas, especially seeing as Les Coureurs must take on European hopefuls Montpellier and Rennes later this month, but Strasbourg may be feeling that little bit optimistic about taking points off of a Marseille side who suffered another heavy European defeat in midweek.
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Marseille's venture in the Champions League looks set to come to a premature end as Les Olympiens continued their losing start against Porto, who put three past Andre Villas-Boas's men in a mirror image to their defeat at the hands of Manchester City last week.
Marseille had a full week off to recuperate and ready themselves for their trip to Porto after Lens' coronavirus cluster forced the postponement of that Ligue 1 encounter, but Villas-Boas's side were no match for the Portuguese champions as Moussa Marega, Sergio Oliveira and Luis Diaz all got on the scoresheet in midweek.
Three defeats, seven goals conceded and none scored at the correct end of the pitch is truly worrying for a Marseille side who have been performing relatively well in the league, and Les Olympiens' defeat at the Estadio do Dragao prompted Villas-Boas to exclaim that his team were doing "s**t" in Europe.
Fans may hesitate to disagree with such an assessment given the manner of Marseille's performances, but Villas-Boas's men must put their continental disappointment behind them as they look to win their third game on the bounce in Ligue 1, with Les Olympiens picking up wins over Bordeaux and Lorient last month.
The Marseille faithful will be buoyed by their side's recent record against Strasbourg; Les Olympiens have not lost to the strugglers in Ligue 1 since 2005, while both meetings last season saw Marseille take the spoils comfortably in the league and Coupe de France.
Strasbourg Ligue 1 form: WLLLWL
Marseille Ligue 1 form: LDDDWW
Marseille form (all competitions): DWLWLL
Team News
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Strasbourg manager Laurey is not expected to return in time to bark instructions from the sidelines, while Monaco loanee Jean-Eudes Aholou has also tested positive for COVID-19 recently.
Ajorque is suspended for this encounter due to an accumulation of bookings, meaning that Majeed Waris can look forward to a start up top alongside Habib Diallo.
Midfielder Dimitri Lienard was forced to miss the loss to Reims with an adductor issue, but the 32-year-old should be back in contention for Friday.
As for the visitors, Villas-Boas will have to make do without the suspended Hiroki Sakai, with 18-year-old Richecard Richard set to be given a run-out on the right-hand side of defence.
Wholesale changes are unlikely from the midweek defeat, but Bayern Munich loanee Michael Cuisance will look to come back into the midfield, while Nemanja Radonjic may return after missing out entirely against Porto.
Dario Benedetto has now hit the 10-game mark without a goal to his name for Marseille this season, and the 30-year-old's spot could be under pressure from Valere Germain, who replaced Benedetto in the second half against Porto.
Strasbourg possible starting lineup:
Kamara; Lala, Caci, Simakan, Mitrovic, Carole; Sissoko, Bellegarde, Thomasson; Waris, Diallo
Marseille possible starting lineup:
Mandanda; Richard, Gonzalez, Caleta-Car, Amavi; Kamara, Rongier, Cuisance; Thauvin, Germain, Payet
We say: Strasbourg 1-2 Marseille
Even though Marseille's performance in the Champions League has been nothing short of abysmal, Les Olympiens have now gone five games unbeaten in the league and will be determined to continue that run amid their European troubles, so we are backing Villas-Boas's men to triumph over a Strasbourg side facing much greater struggles in the top flight.
