Marseille's losing run continues in Montpellier friendly

Marseille failed to halt its poor run during the international break, losing to Montpellier and entering the next competitive test without the confidence it wanted. The defeat came after five consecutive losses in competition, although the heavily altered team cannot be treated as the usual Ligue 1 side. Marseille’s next response will come against Troyes on October 11.

Montpellier won 1-0 at the Francis-Turcan stadium in Martigues on Saturday. Nicolas Pays scored the only goal in the 79th minute. Marseille also drew a blank despite starting with Keyliane Abdallah, Neal Maupay and Igor Paixao in attack, a trio with senior experience. The match was played without television coverage and journalists were not allowed into the stadium, limiting any assessment of the performance.

The game nevertheless showed the lack of defensive options available to Bruno Genesio. Ulisses Garcia and Bamo Meite formed an unfamiliar central pairing in front of Jeffrey De Lange, while Alexi Koum and Emerson occupied the wide defensive positions. Koum, Nouhoum Kamissouko and Abdallah started, with Ugo Kadmiri, Jephte Malanda, Kyle Magaud, Hilan Hamzaoui and Adam El Boughlamy also featuring.

Genesio used the fixture to examine squad players and distribute minutes rather than field his strongest possible side. That context reduces the value of the result as a verdict, but Marseille still leaves the break without a win or a morale-boosting performance. The Troyes match will offer fewer grounds for that explanation.