Olympique de Marseille vs Racing Club Lens
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Today’s free tip is in the French Ligue 1 encounter between Olympique de Marseille and Racing Club Lens.
In the past, winning at the Stade Velodrome was tough. Those fans make more noise than any other in France, in my opinion, and it always afforded Olympique de Marseille that extra boost that they quite honestly needed, having not actually been a good team for a while now. Only most of the bottom half teams have won less home games than tonight’s hosts though, and no matter how amusing the press conferences of Villas-Boas unquestionably are, there’s a lot wrong at this club.
In the entire time that Olympique Lyonnais have ‘demised’ ,if you will, Olympique de Marseille have done nothing to step up to the plate. Paris Saint-Germain have got themselves a billionaire owner, and signed some world-class players during that period, and gone on to dominate French football. Ex-Olympique de Marseille defender Galtier has taken over at Lille OSC, and transformed them into a top club. Stade Rennais have built something from nothing too – all this whilst Olympique de Marseille have done nothing? Honestly, it’s embarrassing. The money they do spent is spent badly too!
Once upon a time, Villas-Boas was a very good manager. I think that time went when he decided he’d rather be a racing driver though. No disrespect intended; everybody’s free to do what they like in life. To then bring him back to manage one of France’s biggest clubs can only be seen as a risky, cost-cutting measure though. What has he even done since returning? I won’t deny that he’s got a mammoth task on his hands, as any manager would at that club, but what’s he done? This team still lacks identity, an attacking threat other than Thauvin from open play, a natural goal-scorer, a defensive leader, and depth. To cap it off, they’ve just let Dutch midfielder Strootman leave on loan(!) for Genoa at a time when Sanson is rumoured to be leaving. Cuisance, Gueye, and Rongier – is that what’s going to carry this midfield to glory? Seriously?
Their attack – what’s that about? There’s only Thauvin that has any consistent quality. Payet does sometimes but it’s few and far between, and for the wages he’s on, they need to get rid. Germain is a grafter, not a goal-scorer – one of those is needed, I grant you, but they also need a goal-getter – and there isn’t one. Benedetto was always a crazy choice, and it’s unsurprisingly failed. Henrique was a wild punt; that’s failed too, with manager Villas-Boas now actually admitting (in public!) that he’s not what they wanted. What kind of message does that send?! Then you’ve got a defence without a leader, one that can’t keep a clean sheet, and their solution is to bring in attack-minded full-back Lirola? The mind boggles at everything this club does, honestly.
For tonight’s game, Olympique de Marseille not only have to deal with the above, as well as their apparent inability to play well when doing anything but countering (and even then it’s inconsistent), but they also have to play without their excellent goalkeeper Mandanda, regular young centre-back/defensive midfielder Kamara, and full-back Amavi. Who is going to fear this team? Not newly-promoted Racing Club Lens, that’s for sure! They’ve shown no fear whatsoever since returning to Ligue 1. In fact, they look like they’ve never been away, having prepared thoroughly for the season ahead. Marseille could learn a thing or two from Haise and co.!
They didn’t go for Football Manager names pre-season, Lens. No, they signed players that would fit into a specific style. I think many thought that Ganago’s time in Ligue 1 was up but no, he was the best forward in the division at the start of the season because he’s playing in a style that suits him. Kakuta has always been regarded as a brilliant playmaker because he is, but the consistency was never there, hence his ‘failed’ career – but he’s been electric since signing for Lens, playing in a style that suits him. Cleverly, they knew it wasn’t all about attacking, Lens, and invested significantly in young Argentinian centre-back Medina to build their defence around – and it’s worked really well, so much so that they miss him when he’s not playing.
This is a seriously good squad because it’s been assembled in the right way i.e. picking the right players for the style, not just signing a supposedly good player and hoping for the best. They’ve got lots of experienced players, a fast attack, a good defensive core, hard-working target men, and a few attackers capable of doing the unexpected. It’s a harmonious combination, and everybody in this team wants to prove themselves at Ligue 1 level for different reasons. Subsequently, Lens play good football, score goals regularly, and seldom give teams an easy ride. What’s not to like about this team?
The only time Lens have struggled this season was when they were missing boatloads of players, back when they faced Lille in the derby. They don’t have much depth, Lens, and considering they’ve only just been promoted from Ligue 2, I can understand that. Their starting eleven is good though, and really effective. They’ve already beaten Paris Saint-Germain (albeit suffering with Covid-19 at the time), AS Monaco, and Stade Rennais this season; why not Olympique de Marseille too? Playing good teams allows them to execute their counterattacking game-plan to perfection, and they’ll get that opportunity here, especially against a team that plays really badly on the front foot.
Their form guide of late isn’t the best, Lens, but they have been without Medina, who is back now. I really don’t see why they’d lose against this overrated Marseille team tonight with that in mind, and they should really be able to win it. At odds of 3/2, I’m happy to take a chance.
Verdict: Racing Club Lens to win with draw no bet at 3/2.
Wednesday’s Thoughts
As ever, if there are any explanations required then please feel free to post a comment! For the remainder of my thoughts on today’s games, see below, although I feel compelled to write that the below are not necessarily my tips but merely my thoughts. For confidence ratings, you’ll need to go to the members section here.
Australian A-League:
Newcastle Jets vs Brisbane Roar
Perth Glory vs Adelaide United
Belgian Eerste Klasse:
Kortrijk vs Sint-Truiden
AS Eupen vs Germinal Beerschot
KV Mechelen vs Standard de Liege
Club Brugge vs KV Oostende
Antwerp vs Cercle Brugge
Brazilian Serie A:
Botafogo vs Atletico Goianiense
Bahia vs Athletico Paranaense
Gremio vs Atletico Mineiro
Coritiba vs Fluminense
RB Bragantino vs Vasco da Gama
Sao Paulo vs Internacional
Czechia Liga 1:
Banik Ostrava vs Slovacko
Ceske Budejovice vs Marila Pribram
Opava vs Sparta Prague
English Premier League:
Manchester City vs Aston Villa
Fulham vs Manchester United
French Ligue 1:
Olympique de Marseille vs Racing Club Lens
German Bundesliga:
Schalke 04 vs Koln
RB Leipzig vs Union Berlin
SC Freiburg vs Eintracht Frankfurt
Augsburg vs Bayern Munich
Arminia Bielefeld vs VfB Stuttgart
Hungarian Liga 1:
Ferencvaros vs Diosgyori VTK
Italian Super Cup:
Juventus vs SSC Napoli
Italian Serie A:
Udinese vs Atalanta Bergamo
Dutch KNVB Beker:
FC Emmen vs SC Heerenveen
Feyenoord Rotterdam vs Heracles Almelo
AZ Alkmaar vs AFC Ajax Amsterdam
Spanish Primera Liga:
Getafe vs Huesca
Real Betis Balompie vs Celta de Vigo
Villarreal vs Granada
Spanish Copa del Rey:
Cordoba vs Real Sociedad
Alcoyano vs Real Madrid
Swiss Super League:
Lugano vs Young Boys Bern
St. Gallen vs Vaduz
Turkish Super Lig:
Rizespor vs Gazisehir Gaziantep
Hatayspor vs Yeni Malatyaspor
Galatasaray vs Denizlispor
Enjoy your free betting tips!