Marseille-Nice is a rematch of the 29th day of Ligue 1 and is played Wednesday at 9 p.m.: statistics, likely lineups, live TV and predictions.
Last Sunday Marseille managed to avoid what would have been its fourth consecutive league defeat and did so thanks to a goal by Cameroonian striker Moumbagna in full recovery in the away match in Toulouse (2-2).
That Jean-Louis Gasset’s men could suffer from cup fatigues was quite predictable: onlythree days earlier, in fact, the Phocéens had been on the field for a full 120 minutes in the return match with Benfica in the Europa League, eliminated after penalties. The one Luis Henrique converted allowed Marseille to detach a pass for the semifinals-the second in the last three seasons after the Conference League one in 2022-where they will face Gian Piero Gasperini’s Atalanta. Normal, then, for Aubameyang and his teammates to discount something in the league, although returning from the Occitan capital with zero points in their pockets would have been detrimental.
Marseille is in danger of being left out of everything
Yes, because if in Europe Marseille has so far gone beyond what was expected, in Ligue 1 it is only ninth in the standings. And it is in danger of being left out of everything.
Sixth place is six points away, which is why the margin for error becomes smaller and smaller between now and mid-May when France’s top league closes its doors. At high tension is the Côte d’Azur derby with Nice, the recovery of the 29th day. The Rossoneri, back on a winning streak after two rounds — over the weekend they scrambled Lorient 3-0 — have seven points more than Marseille and must score a full haul at all costs to recoil from fourth place, which as of this season puts a pass to the Champions League preliminaries up for grabs. Francesco Farioli’s team has slowed down after being among the only ones to keep pace with PSG until three months ago and following a nightmarish February ended up outside the top four.
The prediction
Heavy points up for grabs at the Velodrome. At home, Marseille is a certainty – it has lost only to the irresistible PSG at home – but Nice, revived by its home success over Lorient, has all the cards to snatch at least a draw. Both should score.
Marseille-Nice likely lineups
MARSEILLE (4-3-3): Pau Lopez; Murillo, Gigot, Balerdi, Garcia; Veretout, Kondogbia, Harit; Ndiaye, Moumbagna, Aubameyang.
NICE (4-3-3): Bulka; Lotomba, Todibo, Dante, Bard; Boudaoui, Rosario, Sanson; Cho, Moffi, Laborde.
POSSIBLE RESULT: 1-1
