Sports Mole previews Tuesday’s Champions League clash between Marseille and Ajax, including predictions, team news and possible lineups.
Meeting in a Champions League fixture for the first time in over 50 years, Marseille and Ajax will seek their first points of the competition this season when they square off on Tuesday at the Stade Velodrome.
On matchday one, OM were narrowly beaten 2-1 by Real Madrid, while the Dutch side lost 2-0 at home to last season’s runners-up Inter.
Match previewThe opening match for Marseille left manager Roberto De Zerbi with a bitter taste in his mouth as his side were level pegging with Los Blancos until the latter stages, before losing to a controversial penalty decision.
It was the second penalty called against them in that contest, with this team having now lost 19 of their previous 22 Champions League affairs.
Marseille have not won their opening home match in the group portion of this tournament since 2011, when they blanked Borussia Dortmund 3-0 at the Stade Velodrome.
Defensively, they have struggled in Champions League fixtures, conceding in 21 of their last 22 matches in this competition, but have posted a clean sheet in two successive Ligue 1 home contests, shutting out Paris Saint-Germain in Le Classique last Monday.
Only one of their previous eight home games against Dutch opposition ended in defeat, when Les Phoceens were beaten 1-0 by FC Twente in a 2009 UEFA Cup (now Europa League) match.
In their last five meetings with Ajax, OM are undefeated, winning a thriller 4-3 the last time they met at the Stade Velodrome in a 2023 Europa League fixture, with the winner coming in second-half stoppage time.
The first Champions League appearance since 2022 for Ajax began on a losing note, with the Eredivisie club registering just two efforts on target in front of their home fans.
That extended their losing run in UEFA competitions to four matches, though they won their previous away contest in this tournament at Rangers in 2022 (3-1).
John Heitinga’s men have yet to win a competitive away fixture this season, earning three draws in the Dutch top-flight, conceding first in those last two outings to claim a point.
In their last 19 away matches in either the group or league stage of this tournament, they have only suffered one defeat, with the Dutch emerging victorious in 11 of those instances.
They have conceded at least once in six straight matches in this phase of the Champions League, without an away clean sheet in this competition since a 2-0 win at French side Lille in 2019.
Ajax have a 100% record against Marseille in this tournament, having come from behind to beat them 2-1 in their only previous visit to the Velodrome in 1971, with the legendary Johan Cruyff netting the winner.
Marseille Champions League form:
Marseille form (all competitions):
Ajax Champions League form:
Ajax form (all competitions):
Team News
On matchday one, Geoffrey Kondogbia was subbed off with a calf strain and has not featured for Marseille since, Ruben Blanco missed that game with a knee injury and Hamed Traore was forced out due to a leg issue.
Timothy Weah had the opening goal for them against Real Madrid, while Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang has scored five goals in their last two games versus Ajax, including a hat trick the previous time they met in 2023.
Over the weekend, Ajax were once again without Branco van den Boomen, who had a lower back problem, Kasper Dolberg was sidelined with a knock, while Wout Weghorst entered as a substitute after previously suffering an upper back injury.
In their previous visit to the Velodrome Steven Berghuis set up two of their goals, while Vitezslav Jaros made his first career Champions League start between the sticks on matchday one, with the Liverpool loanee conceding on two of the four targeted efforts that he faced.
Marseille possible starting lineup:
Rulli; Pavard, Balerdi, Medina, Palmieri; O’Riley, Hojbjerg; Greenwood, Gomes, Weah, Aubameyang
Ajax possible starting lineup:
Jaros; Gaaei, Sutalo, Baas, Wijndal; Klaassen, McConnell, Taylor; Edvardsen, Weghorst, Godts
We say: Marseille 2-0 AjaxMarseille were unlucky to come away with nothing on matchday one, but have looked very determined and resilient since than, much more than their upcoming opponents.
That should propel them to a win versus an Ajax side that are still finding themselves under new management, and are likely to face goalkeeper Geronimo Rulli, keen to make an impression against his former team.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
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