Marseille will look to get their first win of this UEFA Champions League (UCL) campaign when they welcome Sporting Lisbon to Stade Vélodrome this Tuesday.
Venue: Stade Vélodrome (Marseille)
Key Statistics
Marseille are winless in their last two home games (D1, L1).
They have failed to score in the UCL this season.
The hosts are one of the four teams in the competition without a goal to their name in the first two games of the competition.
Marseille have a poor record in their recent games in the UCL and have lost 16 of their last 17 matches (group stage and knockout rounds).
They have also failed to find the back of the net in seven of their last eight Champions League games.
Sporting are one of the four teams to have kept clean sheets in the first two games of the competition, with Club Brugge, Real Madrid, and Bayern Munich being the other three sides to do so.
The visitors have kept back-to-back clean sheets in their last three games in the competition.
They have won five of their last six games in all competitions (L1).
They have kept four clean sheets in their last six games.
Head to head
This will be the first competitive meeting between the two sides, with their previous two encounters coming in friendly games in 2017 and 2018.
Latest performances in all competitions
Marseille: W-D-L-W-L
Sporting: W-L-W-W-W
Marseille
Marseille have enjoyed a brilliant start to the season in the French Ligue 1 where they are yet to taste defeat after nine rounds of football, picking up seven wins and two draws to keep them just two points shy of League leaders PSG.
However, Igor Tudor’s side have been abysmal when playing on the International stage. The French outfit sits bottom of Group D after suffering two straight defeats to Tottenham and then Frankfurt in their last outing before the International break.
Les Phocéens are at risk of crashing out of Europe’s Premier club competition just at the group stage if they don’t find a way to transport their domestic form to the International stage.
Marseille have been particularly limp in attack in the Champions League, with Igor Tudor’s side failing to find the back of the net in the two matches they have played so far in the Competition.
The back-to-back defeats will serve as extra motivation for Marseille who came back from the International break to secure a 0-3 win over Angers in their last outing in Ligue 1, and will now face this game with all to play for as they seek to secure their first win in this season’s Champions League.
Marseille hold the upper hand in this fixture with one win and a draw in their only two outings against the Portuguese side. Igor Tudor will be pushing his boys hard to secure yet another win over the Group D leaders.
Possible Marseille starting line-up
Pau Lopez; Chancel Mbemba, Leonardo Balerdi, Samuel Gigot; Jonathan Clauss, Matteo Guendouzi, Jordan Veretout, Nuno Tavares; Valentin Rongier, Amine Harit, Alexis Sanchez.
Injured: Sead Kolasinac, Pedro Ruiz
Doubtful: None
Suspended: None
Sporting
Sporting Lisbon secured a shock 2-0 win over Tottenham Hotspur in their last Champions League fixture to go top of Group D heading into the International break.
The win against Antonio Conte’s side was their second win in the competition in as many games, scoring five goals in the process with two clean sheets in the process.
Ruben Amorim’s side were impressive against Antonio Conte’s side and the Portuguese tactician will be hoping for the same from his team once more as they look to go clear at the top with just three points separating them from Tottenham in Second position and Frankfurt in third.
In contrast to Marseille, Sporting Lisbon have not enjoyed a good start to their domestic League this season, where they sit in seventh place after eight rounds of football, and come into this game off the back of a 2-1 loss to Vilaverdense in the Portuguese PL.
However, Rúben Amorim’s side will fancy their chances of taking a good result away from France, having enjoyed relative success on the International stage so far this season.
Possible Sporting starting line-up
Antonio Adan; Goncalo Inacio, Jose Marsa, Matheus Reis; Ricardo Esgaio, Hidemasa Morita, P. Gonçalves Pote, Nuno Santos; Marcus Edwards, Rochinha, Francisco Trincão.
Injured: Daniel Braganca, Jovane Cabral
Doubtful: Sebastian Coates, Neto
Suspended: None
Prediction
Marseille 1-1 Sporting