Olympique de Marseille vs Lazio 26/10/18

26 October 2018

Arguably one of the most entertaining duels of the Europa League Matchday 3 shall take place at the Stade Velodrome, with Olympique de Marseille looking to host Lazio.

The Phocaeans are yet to secure all three points in Europe, as they’ve lost 2-1 to Eintracht Frankfurt at home on the opening matchday before being held to a 2-2 draw to Apollon Limassol on the road. Therefore, Rudi Garcia’s players have to clinch a victory against the Serie A giants if looking to keep their chances of advancing to the knockout stage alive. Meanwhile, the Olympians are not having the best of times in the French Ligue 1 either, as they already trail Paris Saint-Germain by 11 points, having suffered three defeats in the opening ten league fixtures. Besides, Marseille’s gravest issue relates to their defensive display, as they’ve already conceded 20 goals this season.

As for the visitors, they’ve started their Europa League journey with a tight 2-1 victory over Apollon at home, after which they’ve been outclassed by Frankfurt in Germany, having suffered a devastating 4-1 defeat. The Biancocelesti will enter the encounter full of confidence following two straight Serie A wins over Fiorentina and Parma, in which they’ve kept a clean sheet. Before the aforementioned triumphs, the Eagles have conceded seven goals in two matches, allowing their arch-rivals AS Roma to score three times in the Derby of the Capital. Additionally, Lazio are yet to play out a draw on the road this season, having clinched three wins while getting beaten three times in the process.

Aymen Abdennour, Rolando, and Clinton N’Jie are sidelined by the injuries, while the appearance of Florian Thauvin still hangs in the balance. Meanwhile, Simone Inzaghi won’t have Riza Durmisi and Milan Badelj at his disposal, as both are struggling with various physical problems.