Heading into this weekends match, both Marseille and Monaco have had seasons to forget. Monaco, having replaced Leonardo Jardim with Thierry Henry in October, found themselves in 19th place and in with a real chance of relegation. Marseille, led by Rudi Garcia, had been knocked out of the Coupe de France by amateur side ASF Andrézieux and have been incredibly inconsistent throughout the campaign, currently languishing in sixth position.
To make matters worse, the ever-demanding supporters of OM promised a typhoon of emotion against their team for the match, highlighting the predicament they are in. Despite the current predicaments of both clubs, battles between such powerful and illustrious figures in French football are always unmissable affairs, and this weekends edition was no different.
Team Selections
Monacos starting XI was highlighted by the three debutants chosen by Thierry Henry. For the first time since his highly publicised transfer away from Chelsea, Cesc Fabregas made his debut in the Monaco midfield, as did experienced centre-back Naldo and full-back Fodé Ballo-Touré. To further the continuity issues on the pitch, Monaco were left reeling prior to the start of the match because of Falcaos unexpected absence due to illness.
Marseille on the other hand lined up in Rudi Garcias usual 4-3-3, and had much fewer headaches with regards to personnel issues. Nevertheless, more than a few eyebrows were raised at Garcias selections. Luiz Gustavo, arguably the clubs best midfielder, was deployed as a centre-back. With ex-West Ham maestro Dmitri Payets impulse to tuck inside and perform as a number 10, Morgan Sanson was forced to occupy wider positions; something he is awkward at doing, to say the least.
Garcia further confounded expectations by leaving the only recognize
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