Marseille vs Nantes preview

November 27, 2014
By: Nemanja Lazarevic

Marseille vs NantesLigue 1 leaders Marseille will have to see off high-flying Nantes if they want to remain at the top of the standings, which is not going to be an easy task given that the Canaries are unbeaten in last ten games.

Controversial coach Marcelo Bielsa has done brilliantly to transform OM to genuine title contenders despite the fact that none of the players he wanted to sign arrived at Stade Velodrome.

The Argentine, nonetheless, got the maximum out of the team put together by club officials and his side sit at the Ligue 1 summit after 14 rounds.

Marseille have seen a small dip in form of late, losing to Lyon and PSG in the league while also crashing out of Coupe de la Ligue, but they have since returned to the right track.

OM showed a great deal of character to come from a goal behind to defeat Bordeaux 3-1, overcoming some important missings to claim an important victory.

And with no less than four first team players returning to the side, Marseille look a good bet to defeat Nantes at 1.60 (3/5).

Nicolas N’Koulou and Alaixys Romao return from suspension, while Romain Alessandrini and Jeremy Morel are back from injury and Andre Ayew is out with an adductor problem.

Probable starting line-up (4-2-3-1): Dja Djedje, N’Koulou, Morel, Mendy – Imbula, Romao – Alessandrini, Payet, Thauvin – Gignac.

Not too many people believed Nantes would be able to continue the rich vein of form after key striker Filip Djordjevic left the club, and the Canaries indeed experienced some problems up front.

However, Michel Der Zakarian’s charges were thoroughly impressive in the defensive phase as the rock-solid back line has helped the team record some excellent results this term.

Having conceded mere 9 goals in 14 games, Nantes boast the best defensive record in the league, and they are unbeaten in last ten matches in all competitions.

Even so, the Canaries face a difficult task at Stade Velodrome, but are available at 2.60 (8/5) to extend the unbeaten streak against OM.

Coach Michel Der Zakarian will have Remi Gomis and Kian Hansen back from suspension, but Kofi Djidji remains on the sidelines.

Probable starting line-up (4-4-2): Riou – Cissokho, Vizacarrondo, Djilobodji, Veigneau – Gomis, Hansen – Gakpe, Veretout, N’Koudou – Bammou.

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