Marseille vs Nice

On Sunday night, Marseille hosts Nice at the Stade Orange Velodrome, in a game that could prove massive in the fight for the second automatic Champions League spot in Ligue One.

Marseille

OM are second place in the table, in the second Champions League spot, but also level on points and goal difference with the visitors. The home team are only ahead of Sunday’s opponents’ courtesy of scoring more goals in the French top-flight this season. 

Jorge Sampaoli’s team has been on an unconvincing recent run of form in Ligue One. A 4-1 win at Brest in their last league outing ended a three-game winless run in the French top-flight and kept OM just ahead of Nice in the race to secure second spot in Ligue One. 

Nice

The visitors are hot on the tails of OM for that second spot and this game could be a big opportunity for Christophe Galtier’s team to leapfrog their rivals in the table. Les Aiglons head into this clash on the back of a four-game unbeaten run in the French top-flight. A key to that recent good run of form has been the visitor’s strong defensive displays, as they have kept four straight clean sheets in the league.

Nice’s recent stellar defensive record has contributed to five of their last six games producing under 2.5 goals. 

The visitors have failed to win in their last three away games in the French top-flight, having also failed to find the net in all three defeats. 

Marseille vs Nice Team News

Marseille look set to be without attacking midfielder Dimitri Payet through injury. Nice’s only likely absentee is Youcef Atal, who is expected to miss out through a shoulder injury.