Ligue 1 resumes this Saturday with second and third-placed sides Marseille and Lens battling for a place behind Paris Saint-Germain.
The hosts come into this tie sitting in third position, six points behind the Parisians. However, manager Franck Haise admitted his side made a “big push for the podium” after their 1-0 against Coupe de France winners Toulouse on Tuesday.
That win was their sixth victory in seven Ligue 1 outings (L1) and extended their lead over fourth-placed Monaco to eight points with just five games remaining. They now battle it out here with another candidate for a UEFA Champions League placing in the shape of Marseille in what appears to be a crucial “six-pointer”, knowing that a win would take them above their opponents into the second spot.
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Fans, therefore, may be dreaming of a first top-two finish in Ligue 1 since 2001/02, and the visit of Marseille should be good to weigh their progress after failing to win any of the previous four head-to-head meetings at Stade Bollaert-Delelis (D1, L3).
Their home form could continue to be vital to stopping that run, considering they sit top of the Ligue 1 home standings (W14, D1, L1).
Meanwhile, Marseille will look to narrow the gap between them and Paris Saint-Germain, albeit temporarily, when they travel to Stade Bollaert-Delelis on Saturday.
The Olympians trail PSG by five points ahead of this round and could reduce the gap if they take maximum points here. They were on the cusp of suffering their first league loss in over two months last weekend, but two late strikes saved them from an embarrassing defeat against relegation-battling Auxerre (2-1).
Igor Tudor’s men have showcased their ability to recover from poor starts, with their win against Auxerre contributing to the division’s best average point return (1.5) after conceding first this campaign (W5, D3, L4). That speaks volumes of the character within the group, and their impressive away form this campaign (W12, D3, L1) could be key to avoid suffering a first losing league double against Lens in over 20 years.
Meanwhile, Lens’ Brice Samba has registered more clean sheets (14) in Ligue 1 this season than any other goalkeeper. So we can expect a tight affair here, with under 2.5 goals highly likely.
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