Goals: Moumbagna (56E) OM // Udol (61E) for garnet.
Expulsion: Foot (30E).
This is certainly a recurring feeling for Olympique de Marseille in this 2023-2024 fiscal year: glass half empty or half full. On the one hand, the Pablo Longoria-led club has not lost a single one of its last eleven games in Ligue 1 this season. Yes, but here it is: Since the start of the calendar year, OM have won just one cup match. Enough to avoid a nightmare season at the bottom of the rankings, but too little to hope for Europe at the end of the season. Seventh this evening, Marseille continues to worry about his future. And this performance against a Metz team finally breaking out of its downward spiral of 7 consecutive defeats – even if Lawrence did not try to do better at 10 against 11 from the first half hour – only enhances this impression.
Red for the leg
Entering the icy atmosphere in the velodrome imposed by his supporters, the eleventh starting Olympian decided to heal his heartache with his public by putting his heart into action. The most real proof? Achkata Alexandre Okidja (2E). Joe Metz Kevin van den Kerkhof (7E), it is indeed Marseille’s dominance that emerges during the aperitif, with Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang taking on the role of head chef (9E15E).
Not very comfortable in his outing, Alexandre Okidja receives an arbitration favor for his intervention on the legal border. On the other side of the pitch, Hakim Ben Al Hadj could only see off Samuel Gigot’s clash with George Mikoutadze with a red card. After squandering a clear scoring chance, the OM captain quickly realized that VAR was not going to help him eat up the extra minutes and handed his armband to Pau Lopez. Calm in his cage, the Spanish goalkeeper watched Azzedine Onahi’s header deflected out by Okidja (42).E). In the middle of the meal, Metz is still breathing, and it’s not bad.
Give and take Mistral
Outnumbered, Marseille will want to avoid a third draw at home in the league and step on the accelerator against a team lacking confidence enough to attack. In the oven and the mill, Aubameyang is always sharp, even if Moumbagna is ultimately picked at the end of the first goal of the match. (56E1-0). Author of his first goal of his first stint in Ligue 1, the Cameroonian enjoyed his moment of glory for just five minutes, time to see Mathieu Udol stomach pain for the Marseille defense from a corner. (61E1-1). Facing this Staining Garnet, Marseille have not won any of the last three meetings between the two teams at the Velodrome. Will the Europa League act as a solution? Nothing is less certain.
FC Metz (5-3-2): Okidja – Udol, Harrell, i. Traore, S. Sane, van den Kerkhof (Atta, 91E) – Jean Jacques, L. Camera, K. N’Dorum (N’Duquidi, 46E) – Mikoutadze (Tetteh, 78E), Lamkel Ze (Sabali, 78E). Coach: László Bölöni.
