Marseille welcome Toulouse to the Orange Velodrome for a French Ligue 1 clash on Sunday. Both teams have experienced a torrid time of late but the host’s solid record in this fixture and home form should see them edge the visitors in what should be a high-scoring contest.
Marseille are coming off a 3-1 defeat to Reims in their last Ligue 1 fixture. That was the fourth defeat in the last five matches for the hosts, amid reports about clashes between the players and manager Roberto De Zerbi.
The good news for Marseille is that they are still in the UEFA Champions League places and are unbeaten in seven of their last nine home matches. They often look sharp going forward in front of their fans, with 5-1 victories over Le Havre and Saint-Etienne among their recent home results.
Toulouse were beaten 4-2 at home by Brest last time out in Ligue 1, their second straight loss, following a 2-1 defeat at Strasbourg in their previous fixture. Both results dealt a major blow to their hopes of securing European football as they now sit 12 points off the top six.
These struggles can be traced to a vulnerable backline that has conceded six goals in the last two matches. However, Carles Martinez's men will head into Sunday’s match with some confidence having gone unbeaten in four of their last five away matches.
How the bookies view it: Bookies backing Marseille
Marseille have been installed as overwhelming favourites among the bookies with BoyleSports offering 7/10 for a home win. A victory for Toulouse is priced at 16/5 while a draw is set at 13/5 with BoyleSports.
Head to head: Superior Marseille
Marseille have a 26-8 advantage with 20 draws from 54 previous matches against Toulouse. They also claimed a 3-1 away victory in the reverse fixture.
Players to watch: Reliable Greenwood
Mason Greenwood is Marseille's leading scorer with 15 Ligue 1 goals and also netted a brace in the reverse fixture. The forward is priced at 6/4 by BoyleSports to get on the score sheet on Sunday.
Toulouse forward Frank Magri has scored in each of his last four league appearances and could be the one to watch here. He is priced at 10/3 by BoyleSports to find the net once again.
Probable line-ups
Marseille will be without injured Luis Felipe, Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg, Amine Harit, Faris Moumbagna and Leonardo Balerdi. However, Luis Henrique, Adrien Rabiot and Greenwood are expected to retain their spots in the starting line-up.
Zakaria Aboukhlal, Niklas Schmidt and Rasmus Nicolaisen are unavailable for selection due to injuries. However, Frank Magri is set to return to the line-up after missing the last match due to accumulated card suspension and could be joined in attack by Yann Gboho and Shavy Babicka.
Marseille: Rulli, Cornelius, Belerdi, Lirola, Merlin, Rongier, Kondogbia, Luis Henrique, Rabiot, Greenwood, Gouiri
Toulouse: Haug, Suazo, McKenzie, Cresswell, Sidibe, Casseres, Sierro, Magri, Gboho, Donnum, Babicka
Anything else catch the eye?
Both teams have scored in four of the last five meetings, including the reverse fixture and a repeat is expected at 8/11 with BoyleSports. Four of the last five meetings have produced over 3.5 goals, which is priced at 2/1 by BoyleSports, who are also offering 3/4 for over 2.5 goals.
Four of the last five meetings between both teams have witnessed goals in each half, including the reverse fixture. This clash could be set to follow a similar pattern at 8/11 with BoyleSports.
This French Ligue 1 match between Marseille and Toulouse will be played on and kick off at 19:45. Check below for our tipsters best Marseille vs Toulouse prediction. You may also visit our dedicated betting previews section for the most up to date previews.
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