Marseille's red cards got them another loss at home

With the naked eye, in some matches it is clear that there is material in Marseille for something more than what we have seen in previous seasons. At times they can impress and encourage the fans to dream big, but at other times they show that they are a wild team — truly, truly unruly and unpredictable. What possessed Arthur Vermeeren to charge at Anthony Lopes in the middle of the first half and wipe him out — only he knows. It was obvious he didn’t think too much about what would happen to the Nantes goalkeeper: he didn’t pull his foot back, caught him full on and received a red card. Roberto De Zerbi made a change, brought on Bilal Nadir and — another red?! The Moroccan had to leave the pitch in the second half as well, and the visitors’ job was made much easier; they returned from the Velodrome with three points — 0–2 (0–1).

Nantes were initially unlucky, as VAR intervened twice and two of their goals were disallowed. They also rattled the woodwork, while Marseille’s best chance fell to Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang. The match at the Velodrome was open, and then the Belgian decided to open his foot and not pull out of the challenge. Arthur Vermeeren was badly late and didn’t particularly think about Anthony Lopes’ health…

The Canaries’ goalkeeper released the ball and was kicked in the legs. He writhed in pain in front of the goal line, and the referee had no dilemma — a straight red card. The match was over for Arthur Vermeeren, and coach Roberto De Zerbi had to reshuffle. He was preparing to take Igor Paixao off, and while the Brazilian was waiting, Nantes took the lead through Fabien Centonze. Cutting in diagonally from the left into the middle, Matthis Abline aimed for the far corner. Geronimo Rulli threw himself like a cat and parried the ball briefly, but Fabien Centonze followed up and poked it into the empty net.

Roberto De Zerbi did not abandon his idea, took Igor Paixao off and gave a chance to Bilal Nadir — who let him down. In the second half, within the space of three minutes, he picked up two yellow cards. The Marseille players completely lost control and disappointed the fans. In addition to Fabien Centonze, the new defeat was sealed by Remy Cabella from the penalty spot just before stoppage time. They now have eight points fewer than Lens, and if Paris Saint-Germain win the city derby tonight, they will be seven points clear of their great rivals from the south of France.

This was the last thing Olympique needed, especially with the fans already irritated. Today they also protested against the decision to stage the Super Cup in Kuwait. The banner they raised read: “TDC 2026 in Kuwait, and 2027 on the Moon?” The club offered to take fans to the match against Paris Saint-Germain, to be played on January 8 in Kuwait, with supporters paying only 150 euros for the ticket, while Olympique de Marseille would cover the remaining costs. The ultras rejected the offer.

LIGUE 1 - MATCHDAY 17

Friday

Toulouse - Lens 0-3 (0-0)

/Said 57, Thomasson 85, Ganiou 90+5/

Saturday

Monaco - Olympique Lyon 1-3 (1-1)

/Coulibaly 45+4 - Sulc 38, 57, Vinicius 79/

Nice - Strasbourg 1-1 (0-1)

/Wahi 54 - Panichelli 13 pen/

Lille - Rennes 0-2 (0-0)

/Frankowski 49, Merlin 56/

Sunday

Olympique Marseille - Nantes 0-2 (0-1)

/Centroze 31, Cabella 88(p)/

19.15: (1.95) Brest (3.45) Auxerre (4.00)

19.15: (2.15) Le Havre (3.35) Angers (3.80)

19.15: (1.80) Lorient (3.60) Metz (4.60)

***odds are subject to change***