Marseille’s hopes of qualifying for the Champions League took a huge blow on Saturday afternoon as a clinical Reims side claimed their first victory under Samba Diawara.
THE MATCH
Olympique de Marseille returned to action following the international break and were looking to get back to winning ways against Stade de Reims after a 3-1 defeat at the Parc des Princes. With the race for Europe tightening following Strasbourg’s win over Lyon (4-2) over Lyon on Friday evening, it was imperative for Roberto De Zerbi’s men to go into the final quarter of the season with a win under their belts. In fact, with Marseille’s six competitors for the European spots in action this weekend, it would be the perfect opportunity to find some breathing room in the search for Champions League football. But Reims would rip up that script on Saturday afternoon…
Roberto De Zerbi’s men started the game incredibly high up the pitch, as Reims dropped into a low block of two rigid defensive lines. Dominating early possession, Amine Gouiri got the first half-chance after Adrien Rabiot’s cushioned header to set him up, but the Algerian’s strike was blocked by a combination of Okumu and Kipré. After weathering the initial storm which saw OM hold 86% of possession, Reims managed to break out of their defensive dugout and start to move up the pitch with Nakamura and Ito’s driving runs.
Reims rip up the script
Six games and over 11 hours of football without a goal, Reims would manage to break the curse and get ahead right at the point they were under most pressure. A long sweeping ball found Diakhon on the right side, who managed to find Keito Nakamura. The Japan international found some space and shifted to the right before firing home past Rulli to put the Champagne region side ahead.
Adrien Rabiot’s header was denied on the line only minutes later from Amine Gouiri’s corner, as Akieme’s header stopped what looked like a certain goal to get Les Phocéens back into the game. Half-time came and De Zerbi ran the changes as Pol Lirola and Quentin Merlin came off for Ismaël Bennacer and Amar Dedic to make their entry in the second period.
Yet it was substitute Amar Dedic who was at fault for losing the ball to Nakaruma, and the Japan international simply played Diakhon in behind who provided the finish past a helpless Geronimo Rulli to double Reims’ lead. And it wouldn’t stop there, Reims would hit on the counter attack once more and this time it was Valentin Atangana who skipped past the OM defence and chipped the ball past Rulli.
Valentin Rongier managed to get on the scoresheet with a superb strike from the middle of the box but it would be too little too late for Les Olympiens, who fell to a third straight defeat and have dented their hope of Champions League football next season.
STADE DE REIMS PLAYER RATINGS
Yehvann Diouf – 8
A confident performance from the Reims keeper who used his stature to take the pressure off his side, collecting crosses and making several stops despite not necessarily being tested by OM. He would, however, be disappointed not to keep the clean sheet but nonetheless aided Reims to a vital three points in the dying minutes of the game with several fine stops.
Aurélio Buta – 5
Joseph Okumu – 6
Cédric Kipré – 6
Sergio Akieme – ...
