Pablo Longoria has clearly moved up a gear to build a competitive squad. Here’s what Marcelino’s OM could look like.
The puzzle is not yet complete, but Pablo Longoria is moving forward. Room by room. Because in Marseille more than elsewhere, time is running out. As the preliminary round of the Champions League approaches, the Spanish leader has activated his powerful network to move up a gear in this transfer window. The last few weeks suggest some strong trends for Marcelino’s future team. So what will this new vintage look like?
Animation: a classic system for an even more vertical game
Each season has its soap opera. In Longoria’s software, the choice of a trainer determines a story to be told. It is interesting to note that the Spaniard does not necessarily have a long-term vision in the project, the collective expression. A little do-it-yourself genius, he likes to respond to the tactical precepts of the coaches he chooses. It’s also about his credibility, after all. And in this little game, OM Marcelino version will not have much to compare with the team of its predecessors.
The dogmatic Jorge Sampaoli and the very military Igor Tudor already had very distinct approaches. If the Argentinian seemed obsessed with positional play when the Croatian advocated a more direct style in recovering the ball, these two technicians joined in the use of a system articulated on a three-man defense.
An animation to forget with Marcelino. The Spanish technician will return to a much more classic scheme. The first friendly meetings have also attested to this. No more hybrid schemes, Marseille presented themselves in a flat 4-4-2 system, with two axial attackers and percussion players on the sides to have a very rational occupation of the field. Make no mistake about it: it would be simplistic to see this idea of play as a more defensive approach. But the modus operandi will be easier to decipher. For the players, the adversary, the observers. It’s a bias. Only the truth on the ground will validate it.
The players: variety in all lines, a puzzle not yet complete
In the choice of men, Marcelino’s idea would be to tend towards an evolution without revolution. The loss of a player of the caliber of technical and energy leader Alexis Sanchez is not trivial, but Marcelino should still rely on a backbone quite familiar to the fans.
Pau Lopez will remain OM’s first bulwark. In central hinge, Gigot, Balerdi, Mbemba (if he is to stay) or Isaak Touré, returned from a successful loan to Auxerre, will apply for a starting place. The sides remain under construction. If reinforcement Renan Lodi is expected on the left, can Jonathan Clauss step out of his comfort zone by meeting expectations on the right in a 4-man defense which contrasts radically with the role of piston which valued his offensive qualities? It is a question. She also explains why Longoria would always scrutinize the situation of the Dane Joakim Mæhle… In the middle, Marcelino will be spoiled for choice with Kondogbia, Rongier, Veretout and Guendouzi if he continues his adventure at OM – even Ounahi, who can also evolve higher. This sector is dense and homogeneous, with hardworking players and comparable statuses.
It is especially by observing the offensive profiles that we can already get an idea of the animation imagined by Marcelino. With Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang in the center and Ismaïla Sarr on one side, Marseille will have elements capable of attacking the depth to gain even more verticality. The probable arrival of Iliman Ndiaye would reinforce this emulation, but Vitinha also represents an investment to amortize. Marcelino should try to revive the young centre-forward, whose fixing game seems complementary to Aubameyang’s movements. This tandem of axial attackers will be supported by a duo of eccentric leaders on the sides. The new OM coach has plenty in store. The Moroccans Harit and Ounahi, the Turkish Ünder and the Ukrainian Malinovskyi will be as many cartridges available for the Spanish technician.
