2023-08-16 06:09:00
The game: Boosted OM, miraculous Pana
In a volcanic atmosphere, Marseilles took shy Athenians by the throat. The wide lawn of the Vélodrome surrounded by hot stands cut the legs of the Greeks, punished from the 2nd minute by Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang. After a first one-sided act, the Marseillais, boosted, continued their work of undermining recovery, physically dominating an unrecognizable Panathinaikos team compared to the first leg. However, such a burst of energy paid off in cash at the end of the game.
Less protagonists in the duels, the Olympians gradually retreated once morest the Greeks remobilized in the wake of the entrants. The reduction in the penalty score from Fotis Ioannidis (90th + 9) did not however finish the locals, pushed by overheated stands. Opportunities like the pulse of extra time leaned on the Marseille side. The VAR, which had offered the penalty for the “equalizer” at 2-2 at Pana, even saved the Greeks for an offside position by Ismaïla Sarr.
The players: The recruits had it all, Guendouzi’s nightmare evening
The great players smell the intoxicating perfume of these European evenings. Passed by Barça, Arsenal or Chelsea, Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang justified the thickness of his CV with a double of pure center forward. The recruits, in their great majority, shone on Tuesday evening. Provocative and delicious with the ball at his feet, Iliman Ndiaye set fire between the Athenian lines, like an Ismaïla Sarr who also showed concern for defensive tasks.
Mattéo Guendouzi disappointed with the elimination of OM in the Champions League
Credit: Getty Images
Only Azzedine Ounahi, exiled on the left flank, was a tone below his teammates. Behind him, Renan Lodi slipped a goal ball to Vitinha, and still had his legs in overtime, even crippled with cramps. On the other side, Jonathan Clauss displayed his excellent physical condition. Among the entrants, Mattéo Guendouzi was at the center of the turmoil, guilty of an involuntary hand which caused the score to be reduced and the only Olympian shooter to have missed his shot on goal.
Dynamite and sharp, Amine Harit, he enlightened the Marseille midfield and inevitably won points. On the Pana side, Alberto Brignoli weathered the many Marseille waves with confidence, except when relaunching. Note the striking entries of Sebastian Palacios and Fotis Ioannidis.
The X factor: The 3-0 goal disallowed for an offside position
In line with a first half dominated head and shoulders, OM had the opportunities to take cover and avoid an extended scenario. Still on the lawn, Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang made his speed speak to escape at the limit of offside on the left flank, in the 53rd minute. In the axis, Ismaïla Sarr awaits the leather behind the opposing centrals. Aubameyang sees his partner’s run but sends his pass a tad too late. In an advanced position, Sarr scores closely before being judged by the referee. A few extra centimeters that might have offered the Marseillais a quieter, and above all more joyful, end of the evening.
At state: 87
In the wake of a contagious fever in the stands, OM got off to a flying start. For his first goal in the Olympian tunic, Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang scored, following 87 seconds, OM’s fastest goal in the European Cup since March 8, 2018 and a goal by Lucas Ocampos once morest Athletic Bilbao (1st).
Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang scores during OM – Panathinaikos, in the 3rd preliminary round of the Champions League
Credit: Getty Images
The declaration: Marcelino, OM coach
We can’t blame our players because they gave everything during the match. The superiority was total, especially in the numbers. We conceded a cruel goal when everything seemed to be over, fate played a bad trick on us.
The question: Was Marseille really ready to play a confrontation of this level so early in the season?
After the immense disappointment of seeing their career in C1 come to an end so soon, OM will have to come back to the reasons for such a fiasco. Apathetic in Greece, the Olympians took advantage of the telluric climate posed by the boiling backdrop of the Velodrome to attack Panathinaikos. All in a flat 4-4-2 scheme, the trademark of the new Olympian coach, Marcelino.
The Asturian technician is used to strict instructions, with players constantly involved in recovery, and also responsible for supporting transitions as much as possible. A burst of energy tenable for an hour at most. As expected, the main actors of an enchanting first act suddenly plunged physically (Ndiaye, Lodi, Rongier, Sarr, Aubameyang).
Mattéo Guendouzi and the Marseillais during the penalty shootout during OM – Panathinaikos, in the 3rd preliminary round of the Champions League
Credit: Getty Images
Some insisted despite cramps, less intensity, and Marseille’s house of cards seemed to waver at the slightest breath from Athens near the Marseille surface. So, we can argue that the meeting came a bit too early in the season for the Phocaeans to be able to swallow most of the Marcelino software. But all the clubs concerned are dealing with the same problem.
Would OM have qualified by playing in a more pragmatic register? The question is valid. Still, the expected rise in power and the detonating first hour of the Olympians are all signs of excitement for the future. Marseille will not play the Champions League, but will be able to show their progress ahead in the Europa League. It’s not what the Vélodrome dreamed of, but this team under construction deserves a second chance in Europe this season.
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