Sturm Graz v Marseille: Key absences shape probable Europa League line-ups

Olympique de Marseille travel to Austria on Thursday to face Sturm Graz in the third round of the Europa League league phase, with both sides still searching for their first victory and first points in the competition.

The two teams will be looking to revive their European campaigns in this meeting. Sturm Graz are dealing with a significant list of absentees, while Marseille have fewer selection problems ahead of the fixture.

Sturm Graz

Sturm Graz will be without six players for the match. Emran Soglo is unavailable in defence, while Otar Kiteishvili, Gizo Mamageishvili and Filip Rozga are all missing from midfield.

The Austrian side will also be without forwards Seedy Jatta and Nelson Weiper. The pair have scored five goals between them, leaving Sturm Graz without an important part of their attacking options.

The expected Sturm Graz team is:

Goalkeeper: Ammar Helac

Defenders: Jurgen Heil, Arjan Malic, Joshua Quarshie, Petar Petrovic, Luis Balbo

Midfielders: Jon Gorenc Stankovic, Valmir Matoshi, Jacob Peter Hodl

Forwards: Belmin Beganovic, Simon Seidl

Marseille

Marseille’s list of absentees is shorter, with two players expected to miss the trip to Austria.

Defender Derek Cornelius will not be available, while midfielder Pierre-Emile Højbjerg is also ruled out. The remainder of the Marseille squad is expected to be available as the club aim to collect their first points of the league phase.

The expected Marseille team is:

Goalkeeper: Jeffrey de Lange

Defenders: Timothy Weah, CJ Egan-Riley, Nayef Aguerd, Emerson

Midfielders: Tochukwu Nnadi, Nouhoum Kamissoko, Igor Paixao, Amine Harit, Himad Abdelli

Centre-forward: Amine Gouiri

Match odds

The third-round league-phase fixture between Sturm Graz and Olympique de Marseille takes place shortly. Betting company 1xbet lists Sturm Graz at 3.70 to win, with a draw priced at 3.75 and an Olympique de Marseille victory at 1.96.