One of the biggest football matches in Europe, Le Classique, will be this Sunday, February 26, 2017 (9:00 PM BST/12:00 PM Pacific) when Olympique de Marseille host Paris Saint Germain at the Orange Veledrome in week 27 of the French Ligue 1. While Marseille is far from a Champions League spot, ‘The Olympians’ can still contend for a spot in the Europa League, only four points back of Lyon in fourth place.
Even if Rudi Garcia’s side did not have a spot in Europe on the line, the magnitude of this game should propel the team to have a solid performance. Of course, a big blow to this Marseille team will be the absence of captain, Befatimbi Gomis, due to injury. Gomis is of course ‘The Phocians’ top goal-scorer with 16 goals on the season, also providing two assists.
A lot of pressure will fall on 23-year-old, Clinton Njie in this match with the absence of Gomis. Other key players to look out for in this game for Marseille are Patrice Evra and Dimitri Payet who should provide good leadership with the absence of Gomis in the game. Payet in his new stint with his former club is looking comfortable, having already scored a goal in limited playing time. The Southern French team is currently in good form, having scored in five out of its last six games. 13 goals have been scored in this run, Gomis being the main goal-scorer, getting six goals, the biggest victory being a 5-1 performance against Montpellier.
Another big game in these last six games for Marseille was the ‘Choc des Olympiques’ against Lyon in the round of 32 in the French Cup. Marseille won the encounter at the Orange Veledrome by a score of 2-1, in an intense encounter that needed extra time to be decided. The momentum from the recent run of good form and the big win against Lyon, may help Marseille receive a confidence boost heading into this match.
Paris Saint Germain of course, must have a big boost of confidence heading into the game coming from an enormous 4-0 victory against FC Barcelona in the Champions League, not to long ago. PSG is also currently in exceptional form, being undefeated in its last 13 matches in all competitions. The team from the French capital, have scored 38 goals in this span of games, the biggest victory by goal margin being a 7-0 bashing of Bastia in the French Cup.
Edinson Cavani has been the Parisians top goal-scorer this season, obtaining 37 goals in all competitions. The Uruguayan forward has been in good form as of late getting five goals in the last five games in all competitions. A player that has been exceptional as of late for Unai Emerey’s squad has been Angel Di Maria, providing two crucial goals in that huge victory against Barcelona in the Champions League. A player who perhaps, has not received the same attention as Cavani or Di Maria, is midfielder Adrien Rabiot.
The 21-year-old has been crucial for PSG, providing great work ethic in the midfield both offensively and defensively. You could even argue that without Rabiot, the Parisians do not beat Barcelona in the Champions League, as he was crucial controlling the midfield. Paris Saint Germain is currently three points behind Monaco and Nice, and apart from the game being ‘Le Classique’, the win would be crucial to PSG’s title race this season in the Ligue 1. The game should be entertaining as both sides can offer plenty of goals, a must watch for any football fan.
How to watch Marseille vs PSG
The Marseille vs PSG match will be broadcast this Sunday, February 26 9:00 PM BST:
TV Schedule: BT Sport 2 (UK)
Watch Online: BT Sport Live Streaming (UK), beIN Sports Connect(U.S.), FuboTV (Watch 7 Days Free)
