Olympique Marseille vs. Inter Milan Preview

Olympique Marseille and Inter Milan face off in the second phase of the Champions League on February 22 and a fascinating first leg clash is on the cards at the Stade Velodrome.

The hosts, who became the only French club to be crowned kings of Europe when winning the competition in 1993, sneaked through a tough opening group involving Arsenal, Borussia Dortmund and Olympiakos and will now look to better their performance of last season after losing to Manchester United at the last 16 stage.

Inter Milan reached the quarter-finals of the tournament in 2011; however their surprise 7-3 aggregate demolition at the hands of Schalke 04 means that Claudio Ranieri’s men are on a serious mission this year to restore their reputation on the continent.

This particular tie should be extremely interesting as both clubs are in a resurgent run of form following disappointing starts to their respective domestic campaigns.

A plethora of draws and a goal drought left Marseille near the bottom of Le Championnat heading into the winter whilst Ranieri struggled to make an impression at Inter who were also hovering above Serie A’s relegation zone after the first dozen games of 2011/2012.

It is Marseille who have managed to maintain the most consistency however and their recent draw against perennial league winners Lyon put an end to a five match unbeaten streak.

Inter are still in the hunt for a top four finish in Italy, nevertheless a Coppa Italia exit at the hands of Napoli has been succeeded by defeats against Lecce and Roma – the latter a miserable 0-4 reversal which has left Ranieri with much to do ahead of the return to Champions League action.

With the likes of Wesley Sneijder and Esteban Cambiasso forming the basis of a highly coveted midfield, Inter undoubtedly possess the quality on paper to inflict yet another last 16 defeat upon the French outfit.

But many will remember how tough and resistant Marseille were last season against Manchester United and their exit, in the end, only came down to a solitary goal at Old Trafford after holding Alex Ferguson’s side well at Stade Velodrome.

Boss Didier Deschamps seems to recognise that there are clubs with far greater attacking endeavour and quality than his own and the former World Cup winning captain often chooses to take a conservative, methodical approach to games with the primary objective being to make his team hard to beat.

With those tactics likely to be deployed against Inter who possess superior creativity and danger in attack, a draw in the first leg is perhaps the best option to take from a betting perspective.

It’s 23/10 for a stalemate – however Deschamps will be adamant that his side prevent Inter from snatching an away goal and a similar performance to that versus United last season can keep the match goalless – which is an attractive price at 15/2 with certain firms.

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12/02/2012     © Frixo 2024