A Coupe de France quarter-final slot will be up for grabs when Olympique de Marseille welcomes Ligue 1 champions PSG on Wednesday
The standout fixture of the last 16 of the Coupe de France will see French champions PSG travel to the Orange Velodrome to take on Olympique de Marseille in the La Classique on Wednesday.
Christophe Galtier’s side sit pretty at the summit of the French top division but appear to have shed their cloak of invulnerability. Juggernauts of sorts before the World Cup hiatus, Paris Saint-Germain appear vulnerable of late.
Playing at home, Marseille will be keen to take advantage of it and book their place in the last eight of the competition. Igor Tudor’s men saw their 10-game unbeaten run across all competitions come to an end at the weekend against Nice. They will now be keen to make amends in front of their fans and reel in the biggest fish in French football.
The game pits the two most successful sides in the competition, and there is every reason to expect that the winner on the night could go all the way. PSG have won the competition 14 times while Marseille have done so ten times.
Both sides have also made it to the final of the competition 19 times each, much more than the other teams across France. To call the tie rich in Coupe de France heritage would be an understatement.
The last time both these clubs came up against each other in the competition was in the quarter-final of the 2017/18 edition. PSG came out on top on the occasion, prevailing 3-0 at the Orange Velodrome. Tudor and co will be keen to avoid history repeating itself.
Marseille have not won the competition since 1989 and last made the final in 2016. Unsurprisingly the latter saw them fall to PSG in the showpiece event. The capital side have proven to be a constant thorn in Les Olympiens’ side.
PSG were eliminated at the same stage by OGC Nice last season and will be keen to avoid a repeat of the same. The French champions are comfortably the best side in the nation and will be keen to add a 14th French Cup to their tally and cement their dominance in the domestic game.
Games between the two sides are often heated affairs, and more of the same will be expected this time around. The Hard Tackle looks at how both sides could line up on the night and what tactics they might deploy.
Team News & Tactics
Olympique de Marseille
Ounahi and Marseille are coming for you PSG! pic.twitter.com/Y38CjNDcNO
— Ounahi stan🇲🇦 (@CrewsmatMorocco) February 1, 2023
The home side will be without Eric Bailly, who is still serving his ban for the horror tackle on Hyeres star Almike Moussa N’Diaye in an earlier round of the competition. The Manchester United loanee was handed a seven-game ban and will see it out on Wednesday.
Marseille have more concerns in defence, with another centre-back, Leonardo Balerdi suspended for the game. Amine Harit continues to be sidelined, but Tudor has an otherwise fully available squad to choose from.
The home side are likely to deploy in a 3-4-2-1 formation on the night. While playing with a three-man backline is a threat against PSG, Kylian Mbappe and Neymar’s absences should give Tudor and co more confidence.
Pau Lopez should start in goal behind the back three of Chancel Mbemba Mangulu, Samuel Gigot and former Arsenal man Sead Kolasinac. Jonathan Clauss and Nuno Tavares should provide the width as full-backs on the night. The duo will get forward when possible but also drop back to form a back five if overwhelmed.
The duo of Azzedine Ounahi and Jordan Veretout should hand Marseille the base needed in midfield to dictate the tempo. The former’s mobility, in particular, should keep Marco Verratti on his heels and threaten to upset PSG’s ability to transition quickly from defence to attack.
Ruslan Malinovskyi and Matteo Guendouzi will function as dual playmakers behind veteran Alexis Sanchez upfront. Marseille have a pool of Premier League-proven talent to call upon, and can be dangerous on their day. Should PSG drop the ball, Tudor’s men can take full advantage of it and secure a famous win.
Probable Lineup (3-4-2-1): Lopez; Mbemba, Gigot, Kolasinac; Clauss, Ounahi, Veretout, Tavares; Malinovsky, Guendouzi; Sanchez
Paris Saint-Germain
The French champions go into the game as favourites but have several stars missing on the night. Kylian Mbappe and Nordi Mukiele are still out, with Renato Sanches also joining them on the sidelines.
The Portuguese midfield lasted less than a quarter of an hour against Toulouse before being taken off at the weekend. Neymar and Sergio Ramos are all set to return to training, but the game on Wednesday should be a tad too early for them to feature from the go. With the UEFA Champions League also closing in, Galtier is better off deploying them off the bench for now.
Another defender Presnel Kimpembe is also unlikely to feature despite returning to training. It is not all bad news as star midfielder Marco Verratti returns after a two-game suspension. His return could not have been better timed given the absentees in Galtier’s roster.
🎙 Christophe Galtier's press conference ahead of Marseille – Paris Saint-Germain 🔴🔵 https://t.co/MTorCI3bWJ
— Paris Saint-Germain (@PSG_English) February 7, 2023
Despite the absentees, Galtier is likely to deploy his side in the favoured 4-3-1-2 formation. Gianluigi Donnarumma should start in goal with the quartet of Achraf Hakimi, Marquinhos, Danilo Pereira and Nuno Mendes in defence.
Italian international Verratti should return to the apex of the midfield with Vitinha and Fabian Ruiz flanking him in a narrow midfield three. The trio’s compactness and chemistry will give the wing-backs the freedom to push forward on the flanks.
Carlos Soler is likely to don the number ten’s role with Lionel Messi and Hugo Ekitike leading the line. With two of the vaunted front three likely to be absent, the onus will fall on Messi to dictate terms in the attack.
Probable Lineup (4-3-1-2): Donnarumma; Hakimi, Marquinhos, Danilo, Mendes; Vitinha, Verratti, Ruiz; Soler; Messi, Ekitike
Key Stats
- Marseille have been eliminated from the Coupe de France nine times by PSG so far, more than against any other side in the competition.
- Marseille have won the competition ten times, the second most of any team in France. PSG, meanwhile, are the most successful side in the competition, having won it 14 times so far.
- PSG have made the final of the Coupe de France every season since 2015, bar 2022. They have won the competition six times in the last eight editions.
- Marseille have lost their last four finals in the competition in a row. This is the longest losing streak in the showpiece event of any side in the competition bar Bordeaux (Six finals lost from 1943-1969).
- PSG and Marseille have faced off against each other in the competition 11 times, with the latter winning just once and the former winning 10 games.
- PSG have failed to find the back of the net against Marseille in the Coupe de France just once in the round of 16 in 1990/91.
Player to Watch
Lionel Messi
The Argentine legend continues to shine following his FIFA World Cup win and has been the difference maker for PSG in Kylian Mbappe and Neymar’s absences. The 35-year-old is yet to feature in this season’s Coupe de France but has found the back of the net twice in his last two Ligue 1 games.
Messi is likely to provide inspiration in attack for the visitors and will be their most potent weapon on the night. Shackling him should more or less take the wind out of PSG’s frontline and hand Marseille the initiative in the attack. Should he be allowed to run amok, the veteran is likely to add to his 15 goals and assists across all competitions for PSG this season.
Prediction
Olympique de Marseille 1-1 Paris Saint-Germain (Marseille to win in extra time)
Marseille will be keen to get back to winning ways and avoid back-to-back defeats at home. Injuries in defence will make life difficult for the home side, but PSG’s absentees more or less offset any advantage the visitors might have had.
Any side led by Lionel Messi cannot be discounted but in the end, Marseille should make use of their home advantage to secure a narrow win. Ounahi and Malinovskyi add further quality to Tudor’s roster and should make life difficult for the Ligue 1 champions.
