Marseille too powerful

The context

A tough trip ahead! With the Vélodrome stadium historically a poor place for the Les Verts, and a confident Olympique side to contend with, the day's task promises to be more than arduous for the Stéphanois. To make matters worse, the Vélodrome is set to record its highest-ever attendance on Saturday, giving the Phocéens, who are second in the standings, more encouragement than ever.

The XI

Eirik Horneland was able to count on Dylan Batubinsika's return from suspension, but with Dennis Appiah absent, the coach placed Léo Pétrot on the right flank of the Saint-Etienne defense at the Vélodrome. At the heart of the game, Florian Tardieu was named alongside Pierre Ekwah and Benjamin Bouchouari. The trio of Boakye, Davitashvili and Stassin is once again lined up to drive the game forward.

👊 Le XI stéphanois pour cet #OMASSE ! 🔜🆚 pic.twitter.com/3062PzmcDS

— AS Saint-Étienne (@ASSEofficiel) February 15, 2025

The game

Right from the start, the home side took control of the ball and set up their first attacks to get close to the St. Etienne goal. At the opposite side, Augustine Boakye saw the first Les Vertes shot of the game blocked (9th). From the resulting corner, Zuriko Davitashvili cleverly broke into the box but was caught out at the very last moment (10th). A minute later, Balerdi thought he had opened the scoring with a header from a corner, but his effort was cancelled out by VAR for a foul by Hojbjerg on Gautier Larsonneur, who was prevented from spreading himself in the air (13th). After an instinctive team move, Benjamin Bouchouari took his chance on the volley and forced Rulli into a superb save (17th). Launched by Greenwood into a gap in the middle of the defence, Rabiot was caught out in extremis by Léo Pétrot with a sliding tackle of which he is a master (23rd). From an awkward angle, Greenwood's grounded shot fell to Gautier Larsonneur (26th). But the keeper could do nothing about Gouiri's shot from the edge of the box into the top right-hand corner just afterwards (Marseille 1-0 ASSE, 27th). The striker tried his luck again, volleying in a cross from the right, but saw his shot finish slowly wide of the goal (38th). At half-time, the home side's dominance was logically reflected in their advantage on the scoreboard.

Irvin Cardona replaced Augustine Boakye at the break. However, in the 49th minute, VAR called out the referee to severely penalize Mickaël Nadé for a handball in the box. Greenwood converted the penalty, catching “Larso” off guard (Marseille 2-0 ASSE, 50th). Inheriting a loose ball, Murillo rattled the post (53rd) before converting from close range (Marseille 3-0 ASSE, 58th). Taking advantage of an unmarked foul on Batubinsika and a good through ball, Gouri had all the time in the world to lob Larsonneur and extend the lead (Marseille 4-0 ASSE, 60th). And since Les Verts were not to be varnished, Léo Pétrot hit the crossbar from a Zuriko Davitashvili free-kick after Rulli had been beaten (63rd). Florian Tardieu was no luckier when he saw his delightful curling ball lick Rulli's right-hand upright from a few millimetres (66th). From Louis Mouton's long cross, Zuriko Davitashvili headed the ball just over the Marseille goal (73rd). Following a cross from Dudic, Rabiot added his name to the scoreboard (Marseille 5-0 ASSE, 77th). After a long clearance by his goalkeeper, Irvin Cardona managed to keep hold of the ball and carry it to the Marseille goal before sending it back to Lucas Stassin, who saved the day with an underhand shot past Rulli (Marseille 5-1 ASSE, 79th). After a few more chances for the hosts, either saved by Larso or off target, the match ended in a heavy defeat.

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Next

Next up is the all-important clash with Angers on Saturday at 7pm. And your support is just as important! See you at Geoffroy-Guichard.