Will Galatasaray go down at the Stade Vélodrome?
Last week, Olympique Marseille also suffered a blow: The “Phocéens” conceded their first defeat of this season at home against RC Lens and thus also blew the dress rehearsal before the upcoming match in the European Cup. This week, l’OM will play at home against the Turkish record champions from Istanbul in the second matchday of the Europa League.
Marseille opened their group campaign with a draw against Lok Moscow and will be looking to make amends in their second group game, when they will also be aiming to top the group. With a home win, l’OM can at least move past their upcoming opponents That scenario is obvious, as the visitors from Istanbul have been in disastrous form of late.
Prior to their recent home win over Göztepe, Galatasaray had just one win in five competitive matches. Surprisingly, that success came in the group opener against Lazio Roma, where the Istanbul Lions benefited from a lapse by their opponent’s keeper.
In the second group match, meanwhile, there are few arguments in favour of the Turkish representatives pulling off another surprise coup. Galatasaray have only won two of their last ten away games in France. In return, the Turkish record holders have suffered a total of seven defeats – will they now suffer the next setback at a French club?
France Marseille – Statistics & current form
Olympique Marseille have now squandered the momentum after their strong start to the season. After the goalless draw against Angers SCO less than a week ago, l’OM even suffered their first defeat of the season last weekend. As a result, head coach Jorge Sampaoli’s team not only slipped to third place, but also missed out on catching up with PSG.
After only eight matchdays – l’OM have one game less on their account – the “Phocéens” are separated by ten points from the leaders from Paris. It is quite possible that this gap will widen again. On Sunday, they face the difficult away hurdle at the defending champions Lille. For the time being, however, the focus is on the second matchday of the current Europa League.
A fortnight ago, the team only managed a disappointing draw against their group rivals from Moscow, when l’OM squandered a lead in the final phase despite being outnumbered. It was a bitter setback, as the “Phocéens” had previously dominated the match against Lokomotive Moscow at will.
Will there be an act of defiance against Galatasaray?
Olympique Marseille will be looking to end their mini-crisis against the Turkish record champions and compensate for their poor start to the group with three points on matchday two. The home advantage comes in handy for the French top club. There has been only one defeat at the Stade Vélodrome in the last twelve home games
In addition, the record against Turkish clubs is also quite respectable. So far, Marseille have met teams from Turkey ten times on the international stage. OM has a record of 4-3-3, with two of the three defeats coming against Besiktas and Fenerbahce.
If that record improves in the upcoming match, odds of 1.66 are paid out for a bet on Sampaoli & Co. at Marseille vs. The Argentine will only have to do without Milik due to injury, but the stricken Kamara is expected to be back in the squad line-up.
Predicted Marseille line-up:
Lopez – Gonzalez, Balerdi, Caleta-Car – Lirola, Guendouzi, Gerson, De la Fuente – Ünder, Harit – Dieng
Last matches played by Marseille:
Turkey Galatasaray – Statistics & current form
After four winless games in a row, Galatasaray managed to score three points in the Süper Lig for the first time, punishing title rivals such as Besiktas and Trabzonspor for dropping points. However, this has not yet compensated for the weak start to the season of the Turkish record champions, who are still five points off the top of the table.
Moreover, the home victory against Göztepe should by no means be seen as an act of defiance. As on the previous match days, Galatasaray delivered a weak performance, and at one point the record champions from Istanbul were even trailing 0:1. It was only after the second half that the Lions made a comeback.
In the Europa League, Galatasaray now face a difficult away match in Marseille, where the record champions from Istanbul want to improve their poor away record in France. After all, there have been only two wins in the last ten away games against French clubs Gala even lost seven of the ten away games
Fatih Terim gets more options in the starting eleven
For the 2021/22 season, the Turkish Football Federation introduced the new foreigner regulations, which is why Fatih Terim has only been able to use eight legionnaires in the starting eleven in the Süper Lig so far. On the international stage, however, the “Emperor” has all the options in the squad at his disposal. Among them is the long-suspended Marcao, who will be back in the starting eleven in the European Cup.
Compared to the starting eleven that landed a narrow home win last weekend, the Lions from Istanbul are expected to make some changes in Marseille. Especially in the offensive, where Fatih Terim recently relied on players like Aktürkoglu and Dervisoglu, rotation cannot be ruled out.
Nevertheless, it is more than daring to make a prediction on the guests in Marseille against Galatasaray. Apart from qualifying matches, the Turkish record champions have not won in the main round of a European Cup for 19 away matches. The last win came in the 2012/13 season when they beat Schalke away, and Gala have been winless away from home since then.
Predicted line-up of Galatasaray:
Muslera – Yedlin, Marcao, Nelsson, Van Aanholt – Antalyali, Assuncao – Morutan, Cicaldau, Feghouli – Mohamed
Last matches played by Galatasaray:
France Marseille – Galatasaray Turkey Tip
The guests from Istanbul are, as expected, the underdogs in Marseille. If you take a look at the recent form curve in recent weeks, the bettors’ assessment is not at all surprising. In the last six matches, the Turkish record champions celebrated only two victories.
Marseille, on the other hand, were in excellent form – at least before the recent home defeat against RC Lens. Especially at the Stade Vélodrome, the top club from Ligue 1 was bursting with self-confidence. Before the home defeat to Lens, Marseille had not lost eleven home games in a row, both in the season and in the competition.
Good chance to build on strong home record against Galatasaray. The visitors from Istanbul have not won an away match in the main round of a European Cup since the 2012/13 season. They have also suffered seven defeats in their last ten away games in France.
