Olympique de Marseille won against Shakhtar Donetsk to secure their ticket for the round of 16 of the Europa League (3-1).
After a week of high tension, looking at the other French clubs involved in the Europa League was certainly not the best idea, for these Marseillais plagued by doubt, this Thursday. The evening had in fact started with a wave of elimination, violent and overwhelming. Rennes, Toulouse then Lens, at the end of extra time, had all fallen by the wayside. Everyone has their own problems, as the saying goes. OM has had enough.
The poor defeat at Brest (0-1) resulted in the sidelining of Gennaro Gattuso, replaced on the bench by Jean-Louis Gasset. The choices of the new OM coach were necessarily scrutinized. He did not hesitate to cut to the chase, with strong decisions, such as the return to a 3-5-2 formation which had borne fruit before the holidays, or the tenure of Moumbagna alongside Aubameyang.
OM didn’t give up
This first, the OM Gasset version, however, got off to a bad start. From the outset, the Marseillais were surprised by a Ukrainian team ready to exploit the slightest space behind them. Eguinaldo won a penalty after a duel with Clauss. Sudakov did not tremble to convert it and give the visitors the advantage (0-1, 7th). Back against the wall, the Marseillais then revolted, under the leadership of the man who will remain the providential man of this chaotic season, whatever people say: Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang.
Put into orbit by Harit after a high recovery, the Gabonese striker produced a high-flying sequence to equalize with a victorious strike (1-1, 23rd). This goal – the 31st of his career in the Europa League – allowed Aubameyang to overtake Radamel Falcao in the ranking of top scorers in the history of the competition. He also and above all put OM back on track, at least in the game. More enterprising, Gasset’s men could have got back in front with a shot from Kondogbia, without success (27th). Above all, they could have benefited from a penalty, twice, for disputed actions.
Everything was decided during the second act. And it was the Marseillais who had the last word. With a nice pivot strike, Sarr blew up the Vélodrome by giving his team the advantage (2-1, 74th). And in the process, it was Kondogbia who definitively sealed Marseille’s qualification with an opportunistic flat foot after a free kick from Clauss (3-1, 81st). A precious advantage that Jean-Louis Gasset’s men retained until the end. OM is finally getting back on track.
