Liverpool will look to potentially climb inside the top eight in the league phase of the Champions League on Wednesday night as they travel to the Velodrome to take on Marseille.
Liverpool’s inconsistent season continued at the weekend as they played out a frustrating 1-1 draw with relegation-threatened Burnley at Anfield.
Whilst that extended their unbeaten run to 10 matches in the Premier League, Arne Slot’s men have drawn each of their last four, but they still occupy fourth position in the table, a point clear of fifth-placed Manchester United.
The Reds, at least, bounced back from their 1-4 loss at home to PSV on MD5 in the Champions League by grabbing a late winner in the San Siro to beat Serie A leaders Inter 0-1, leaving them in ninth position in the league phase table, outside of the top eight only on goal difference.
Marseille claimed just their second victory from their last five matches in Ligue 1 at the weekend, as they thrashed newly-promoted Angers 2-5 away from home.
Nevertheless, Roberto De Zerbi’s hosts remain in third position in the Ligue 1 table, seven points behind rivals PSG and eight behind surprise leaders Lens.
Despite losing three of their opening four league phase matches, OM still have a realistic chance of reaching the knockout stages thanks to back-to-back wins at home to Newcastle United and away at Union Saint-Gilloise in their last two Champions League fixtures, meaning they are in 16th position in the league phase table, three points behind their visitors.
How the bookies view it: Liverpool favourites
Despite their inconsistent league form, Liverpool are favourites to leave the Velodrome with all three points, with bet365 pricing an away success at 10/11.
Marseille are 11/4 to record a third consecutive victory in the competition, whilst the draw is 14/5.
Head to head: Three wins on the spin for the Reds
These two clubs met in the group stages of the Champions League in both the 2007/08 and 2008/09 seasons, with Liverpool winning each of the last three meetings, including both clashes at the Velodrome.
However, Marseille did win at Anfield in 2007 and knocked the Reds out of the last 16 of the UEFA Cup in the 2003/04 campaign.
Players to watch: Szoboszlai to strike again in Champions League?
Dominik Szoboszlai was Liverpool’s hero in their last Champions League outing in Milan last time out, as his late penalty gave the Reds all three points.
The Hungarian international has scored three goals and provided three assists across his six appearances in Europe this season – providing a goal contribution in five of those matches – and the 7/5 on offer at bet365 for him to Score or Assist at the Velodrome on Wednesday night appeals to me.
Predicted line-ups:
Marseille are still expected to be without Nayef Aguerd following his participation in the dramatic final of the Africa Cup of Nations on Sunday night.
Liverpool will still be missing Giovanni Leoni, Conor Bradley and Alexander Isak through injury, whilst it’s unclear whether Mo Salah will return following his participation at the Africa Cup of Nations.
Marseille: Rulli, Pavard, Balerdi, Medina, Weah, Gomes, Hojbjerg, Emerson, Greenwood, Paixao, Aubameyang
Liverpool: Alisson, Frimpong, Konate, van Dijk, Robertson, Gravenberch, Wirtz, MacAllister, Szoboszlai, Gakpo, Ekiteke
Anything else catch the eye?
Given how inconsistent both of these clubs have been this campaign, it’s hard to put much trust in either side to claim all three points.
Marseille’s matches are generally good for goals under De Zerbi, with their six Champions League contests this season averaging 3.17 goals per game, with Over 2.5 Goals paying out in five of them.
OM have scored 11 times across those six matches, only drawing a blank against Atalanta, but their solitary clean sheet came against struggling Ajax, meaning I’m drawn to the 10/11 on offer at bet365 for Both Teams to Score & Over 2.5 Goals.
Interested in why both teams scoring is such a strong angle? Check out our Masterclass on BTTS and sharpen your match-reading game.
GambleAware