Marseille – Villarreal : Preview & Prediction
With a five-star performance, Olympique de Marseille beat Clermont 5-1 on Saturday in a match that served as perfect preparation for the first leg of their UEFA Europa League (UEL) round of 16 tie against Villarreal. The home side are in fine form heading into the first leg of the tie, having racked up three wins in all competitions, all by a margin of at least two goals. Under veteran coach Jean-Louis Gasset, who made his debut on February 22, the Marseille side has been resurgent and has shown significant attacking power.
It would be risky to bet against the aforementioned streak continuing, given Marseille’s eight wins and one draw in their last nine home matches in UEFA competitions (G8, E1). Add to that near-immaculate run of ten wins in their last 16 European home games (G10, E4, P2), and the Focese can be confident of taking the upper hand in the tie and tipping the balance in their favor in their home record against Spanish clubs (G3, E1, P3).
As fate would have it, Villarreal also head into the first leg of the tie on the back of a 5-1 home win over Granada, second-bottom in LaLiga EA Sports (LL) at the weekend. Thanks to that win, the Groguet side moved up to 12th place and almost definitively banished the spectre of relegation, although Marcelino García Toral’s side are still ten points off the European zone. Having significantly improved their results in LL, the team that finished first in Group F will be looking to take a big step away from home on the road to the goal of conquering their second UEL (champion 2021).
It should be noted that Villarreal have won the first leg in six of their last seven UEL ties (G6, P1), and their recent away record in the competition is also very encouraging; the Yellow Submarine have won seven of their last ten away games in the UEL (G7, E2, P1), although they scored at least three goals in only two of those outings.
Players to watch: Ismaïla Sarr scored the goal that sealed Marseille’s passage to the Round of 16; each of the Senegalese winger’s last three goals have come after the 70th minute. For the visitors, the impact of Alexander Sørloth, who scored a hat-trick last weekend and whose two goals in UEL 2023-24 have been instrumental in back-to-back wins for his side, could be crucial.
Key stat: Marseille have scored at least two goals in five of their last six UEL home games.
Marseille – Villarreal : Betting Tips
Marseille – Win Odds: 2.25
