Marseille – AS Monaco, Picks and Tips
The first and only team to have won the Champions League so far, Olympique Marseille, wants to return to the 'rich table'. They are currently in second place with 47 points, one more than Nice, who are on the last step of the podium. But there are still plenty of points left to play for, and each of them could make a decisive difference in the final battle in a league where the standings are tight both at the top and relegation. OM dropped two important points in the last round away to Troyes. Payet scored from the spot and Marseille looked like winning the game. But then came the 90th minute goal by Touzghar for Troyes. This is the second consecutive match in which Marseille have failed to win. In their last match at the Velodrome, Sampaoli's team lost to Clermont, 0-2.
AS Monaco had an important chance to win the French Cup after a long time, especially as PSG had been eliminated from the competition. The Monegasques had beaten Nantes in the semi-finals and, on "paper", were favourites over the "Canaries". And things looked to be looking up after Maripan's 12th minute header. But only after 10 minutes Nantes equalised at the end of a counter-attack, with Sidibe scoring in his own net. The match ended 2-2 after goals from Moutoussamy and Boadu respectively, so qualification was decided on penalties. Two key players, Ben Yedder and Tchouameni, missed, so AS Monaco missed the chance to play in the final. Most of the spectators swarmed onto the pitch to celebrate the Canaries' qualification. It was a match in which AS Monaco players used up a good part of their resources, both physical and mental. The recovery time before the Marseille match is about 72 hours. And the atmosphere at the Velodrome will be at least as flamboyant as in Nantes. It's four matches since AS Monaco last won. Three of them in Ligue 1, two draws (0-0 with Lorient, 1-1 with Bordeaux), and the respecitve 1-2 home defeat with Reims. After 26 rounds, AS Monaco is 9th in the table with 38 points. There is a nine-point gap between Olympique Marseille and AS Monaco ahead of their head-to-head.
Our recommendation tip for Marseille – AS Monaco: BOTH TEAMS TO SCORE @ 1.70