Roberto De Zerbi’s rebuilt Marseille side can offer PSG a real title race
Cue the narrative klaxon, there’s a title race on in Ligue 1! Plucky Paris SaintGermain battled to a valiant win over Le Havre on Friday, despite losing their superstar striker Kylian Mbappé to Real Madrid and his putative replacement, Gonçalo Ramos, to injury. Les Parisiens are now behind Roberto De Zerbi’s allconquering Olympique de Marseille on goal difference only.
While the truth of the matter doesn’t stretch quite to that extent, after the opening weekend of the season in France, it looks like OM’s bold transfer plans this summer may pay dividends. In a summer where concerns over broadcasting deals have seen many recent surprise packages (Lille, Lens, Reims) limited in their spending, while other European contenders (Monaco, Lyon) added depth or promising talents rather than marquee players, Marseille have been unstintingly bold, signing eight players who hope to figure in De Zerbi’s first-choice XI.
Leading the way, of course, is the controversial signing of Mason Greenwood, a player whose discontinued court case saw him leave Manchester United, his move to Ligue 1 labelled by the mayor of Marseille as being “against the values of the club and the city.” There’s no question the club are being cautious with Greenwood — he was left out of the team’s trip to Sunderland for a pre-season friendly, with his absence being attributed officially to injury. Even De Zerbi, known for vociferously defending his players, referenced this post-match, saying, “I am happy that he scored. It will calm the controversies that surrounded his arrival.”
Those controversies aren’t likely to disappear. However, there is merit to Marseille’s overall transfer strategy. Of the eleven players that started the 5-1 win away to Brest – the side who finished third last season – six were not in the squad last season, and three more new arrivals will be fit or back from suspension in the coming weeks.
There, have, of course, been some casualties of this as well. Ismaïla Sarr and Iliman Ndiaye were sent back to England for little net loss after indifferent seasons at the Vélodrome, while veterans Jonathan Clauss and PierreEmerick Aubameyang were also sold, despite having had stronger campaigns. De Zerbi has also placed Chancel Mbemba, Jordan Veretout and Samuel Gigot in the proverbial loft, the three training away from the first team.
Gigot and Mbemba are hardly world-beaters, but with Clauss’ exit and that of keeper Pau López, De Zerbi would be starting the season with an almost-entirely rejigged defence, retaining only Leo Balerdi and Quentin Merlin as players who had been regulars last season. Balerdi, captain on the night, will likely be partnered with Lilian Brassier, so impressive for Brest last season, and with Merlin playing on the left and Amir Murillo on the right.
In midfield, another loanee, Tottenham’s Pierre-Emile Højberg, has arrived and seems set to partner Ismaël Koné, a dynamic young Canadian international signed from Watford, in De Zerbi’s 4-2-3-1, with Geoffrey Kondogbia also an option. The front four, on the evidence of Saturday evening, will be the crown jewel of the team, even if Amine Harit does move on in this window, as is still possible.
Greenwood, playing on the right, scored twice while Luis Henrique, a player who had scored only two goals since joining from Botafogo in 2020, did the same, with Harit adding a pair of assists. Elye Wahi, another promising young attacker who will be motivated to improve upon a disappointing season with Lens (and is still only 21) led the line ably and added a goal of his own. With the likes of Faris Moumbagna and the much-hyped Inter loanee, Valentín Carboni, also in the squad, there is no shortage of attacking depth.
Keeping in mind the outsized power of the DNCG, France’s famous footballing financial watchdog, all of this reconfiguration was accomplished with a minimal net spend, projected to be in the region of €10m. The sales of the likes of Veretout, Harit and Mbemba could further balance the books over the coming fortnight.
With no European football with which to contend – Marseille were stretched dearly by last year’s run to the Europa League semifinals – this team does indeed have the potential makings of a title contender. As riveting as De Zerbi’s side were going forward, they also looked worryingly loose at the back, with new goalkeeper Gerónimo Rulli making more saves (four) than his counterpart, Marco Bizot.
Brest were irrepressible at times last season going forward, but as displays by PSG and Rennes showed over the weekend, they are far from the only dangerous team in the league — Marseille will absolutely need to see their defence take shape in a more convincing way in the weeks to come. Still, though, it’s a rare moment to see a team in Ligue 1 make wholesale changes and hit the ground running like this.
Given De Zerbi’s achievements with Brighton, it would hardly be an unreasonable expectation to have a closer title race than we’ve observed in the last three seasons, a vindication for this summer’s boldness on the part of the club’s hierarchy.
Talking points
Part of why there needs to be some credence given to Marseille having a shot at the title will be how PSG’s season unfolds. The injury to Ramos is severe indeed — the Portuguese striker needs surgery and could be out until the new year. Even if Randal Kolo Muani is a capable option in attack, once the team returns to Europe, the ability of Luis Enrique to rotate his side will be paramount. After spending much of the last three windows building a younger, more cohesive side, might the defending champions be forced into buying a big-name player, à la Victor Osimhen or Jadon Sancho, to reinforce their attacking options?
Aside from PSG, Rennes were the other team to turn in a dominant performance at the weekend, beating Lyon 3-0. Steve Mandanda saved a penalty, but with goals from stalwarts Amine Gouiri and Benjamin Bourigeaud, Rennes sparkled in a match that could have been a difficult one following a long list of departures, playing a solid yet optimistic 4-3-1-2 that morphed into a 3-4-3 in possession with the wingbacks, Alidu Seidu and Lorenz Assignon, getting forward at will. The Bretons will face more canny (and better organised) opponents than Lyon this season, but without European football, Julien Stéphan will have ample opportunity to build continuity from this result.
Finally, a word for Auxerre. Their 2-1 home win over Nice was probably the shock result of the weekend – even with Les Aiglons missing the injured Terem Moffi and others – but the underlying numbers tell a different story. Under Christophe Pélissier, the hosts had more shots on target and weren’t far off from being level in terms of possession. Just as his Amiens sides of the recent past punched above their weight following promotion, Auxerre may be set to do the same.
This is an article from Get French Football News
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