Olympique de Marseille Face Benfica in Pre-Season Clash Without Key Stars
Following a convincing friendly victory over Bayer Leverkusen, Olympique de Marseille are set to continue their pre-season preparations with another high-profile fixture, this time against Portuguese champions Benfica on Wednesday evening.
However, the Ligue 1 side will be without two of their key players, Nicolas Nkoulou and André Ayew. The duo, who recently returned from extended holidays after participating in the 2014 FIFA World Cup, were deemed not yet physically ready by head coach Marcelo Bielsa and have not been included in the squad for the match.
In their absence, Bielsa has called up two promising young talents: central defender Stéphane Sparagna and forward Jérémie Porsan. The pair will be looking to make an impression as the club continues to evaluate squad depth ahead of the new campaign.
Marseille’s 18-man squad for the encounter includes:
Goalkeepers: Julien Fabri, Brice Samba
Defenders: Brice Dja Djédjé, Lucas Mendes, Benjamin Mendy, Jérémy Morel, Stéphane Sparagna
Midfielders: Morgan Amalfitano, Benoît Cheyrou, Giannelli Imbula, Mario Lemina, Dimitri Payet, Alaixys Romao
Forwards: Romain Alessandrini, Michy Batshuayi, André-Pierre Gignac, Jérémie Porsan, Florian Thauvin
The fixture provides another valuable test for Bielsa’s men as they aim to build momentum and cohesion ahead of the start of the Ligue 1 season.
