- Date: Thursday, 22 February
- Kick-off Time: 8:00 PM (GMT)
- Stadium: Orange Vélodrome
Marseille vs Shakhtar Donetsk Preview:
After the grueling 2-2 draw last week in the first leg of the UEFA Europa League play-off round at Volksparkstadion, Shakhtar Donetsk’s temporary home ground, the Ukrainian side will travel to a hostile ambience in Marseille hoping to grab a victory against the struggling home French side.
While Shakhtar dominated possession at home in the first leg, most opportunities fell to the visitors, who managed to only convert two of their chances. Shakhtar were clinical in attack and capitalized on all opportunities afforded to them. Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang opened the scoring for Marseille just past the hour mark before Mykola Matviyenko quickly equalized for the Ukrainian side 4 minutes later.
Iliman Ndiaye scored a stunning 90th-minute goal and Marseille burst out celebrating thinking the game had been won. Unfortunately for them, yet again Shakhtar found their way through. Eguinaldo scored for the home side in 90+2 from a beautiful header to end the game in a draw. Now, Marseille will host Shakhtar in the second leg hoping to capitalize on their home advantage.
However, Marseille will enter the second leg in turmoil. The French side have struggled in Ligue 1 and after another loss on the weekend in the league against Brest, the club decided to fire manager and Italian legend Gennaro Gattuso. While Marseille plans to replace Gattuso with Jean-Louis Gasset, no official replacement has been appointed. Entering a crucial tie without a manager can prove detrimental to the side.
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Team News:
Marseille:
Apart from their energetic display against Shakhtar last week, Marseille has been a club bereft of energy recently. Marseille has failed to win any of their last 7 games while losing 3 of those games. On the weekend, Marseille continued the trend with a lethargic 1-0 loss to Brest. While managerial issues have affected the squad all season, injuries have also played an important role in destabilizing the French squad.
Marseille lost their talisman in midfield, Valentin Rongier, to a brutal knee injury in early November. His knee required surgery and ruled him out till at least the end of February. His absence has left a gaping hole in the midfield, one which was evident even against Shakhtar. Just as the squad was recovering from the loss of Rongier and returning to form, veteran Jordan Vertout got injured. His thigh injury saw him sidelined for a month, and he was expected to return for the tie against Shakhtar but is unlikely to return.
Les Phocéens will also be without the services of Bilal Nadir who earlier suffered a season-ending injury. He will be accompanied by Michael Murillo whose still not fit enough to return from his injury to face Shakhtar yet. Center-back Leonardo Balerdi’s yellow card in the first leg means he will be ruled out for the tie at home via suspension for accumulation of yellow cards.
Shakhtar Donetsk:
Given the winter break of the Ukrainian League, Shakhtar weren’t involved in any fixture on the weekend. The Ukrainians currently sit only 3 points behind table toppers with two games in hand. Shakhtar have been in fine form and in the winter break have been able to recover all their players from injury and look comfortable. Shakhtar will only miss the services of Valeriy Bondar who’s yellow card against Marseille in the first leg will see him suspended via accumulation of yellow cards.
Luckily for Shakhtar, captain and star player Taras Stepanenko survived a major injury scare as he came off against Marseille with a thigh bruise. However, MRI scans and tests have revealed that he is fit to partake in the second leg.
Predicted Lineups:
Olympique Marseille Expected XI:
Pau López (GK), Jonathan Clauss, Samuel Gigot (C), Chancel Mbemba, Quentin Merlin, Geoffrey Kondogbia, Azzedine Ounahi, Amine Harit, Luis Henrique, Faris Pemi Moumbagna, Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang
Shakhtar Donetsk Expected XI:
Dmytro Riznyk, Yukhym Konoplia, Mykola Matviyenko, Giorgi Gocholeishvili, Irakli Azarovi, Taras Stepanenko (C), Oleksandr Zubkov, Artem Bondarenko, Georgiy Sudakov, Eguinaldo, Danylo Sikan
Head-to-Head Record:
The two sides have faced off against each other thrice, including the fixture last week. All three ties have been in the Europa League, with Shakhtar winning two and one tie ending in a draw.
The last three results:
- Shakhtar Donetsk 2-2 Marseille:- Europa League – 15 February, 2024
- Marseille 1-2 Shakhtar Donetsk:- Europa League – 17 April, 2009
- Shakhtar Donetsk 2-0 Marseille:- Europa League – 9 April, 2009
Prediction:
Marseille enters the fixture on the back of an extremely poor streak. Without the likes of Valentin Rongier and Jordan Vertout, the club will struggle even at home. Meanwhile, Shakhtar entered the game rested and injury-free. However, Marseille might be boosted by the home support and the presence of new management and might just scrape a close victory. If the previous tie is any indication, the French club will try their best to exploit Shakhtar via the wings where they’re the weakest, and Marseille are the most dominant. Marseille vs Shakhtar Donetsk will be a cracker.
Predicted Score: Marseille 2-1 Shakhtar Donetsk
Betting Tips:
Bookmakers expect Marseille to win the home tie, albeit expect a close game with fewer goals.
- Marseille win:- 1.79
- Draw:- 3.55
- Shakhtar Donetsk win: 4.70
Odds Source: Oddspedia
Bookmaker: Stake
Where to watch Marseille vs Shakhtar Donetsk:
- India: Sony Liv, Sony Sports Network
- France: Canal+, RMC Sport
- Ukraine: MEGOGO
- USA: Paramount +
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