If the French media believes that Olympique de Marseille’s chances of beating Inter Milan in the Champions League are good, the Italian newspapers are also in the same wavelength given Inter’s recent woes
On paper, a game between Olympique de Marseille and http://www.senore.com/Football-soccer/Inter-c39567 Milan would be a tempting affair but, few would see the Phoceens coming out victorious. Though this can be true in most cases, recent results for both sides in their respective leagues could change
all that.
Faltering in Serie A and Lombardy
Inter Milan have not won a game in the Italian Serie A for some time and Claudio Ranieri’s team are currently in 7th place in the Serie A standings. Marseille on the other hand, have recovered well from a poor start to the current Ligue 1 campaign.
Inter have lost four of their last five games and lost to Bologna (3-0) and relegation-threatened Novara (1-0) at home in their last two games.
While http://www.senore.com/Football-soccer/Olympique-de-Marseille-c40127 players have asked fans to keep their feet on the ground, Italians are being very careful.
Media frenzy across the Alps
For L’Equipe, the French giants have “an opportunity” and “the right to dream”. For their part, La Provence are confident of Marseille’s chances. The headline said, “Inter-OM: no need to fear.” Le Parisiens says, “OM wants to tuck Inter to bed.”
If all of France believes that Marseille are likely to emerge victorious, what about the other side of the Alps? Do they really take the 2010 Champions of http://www.senore.com/Football-soccer/France-c2899 as a serious threat?
Of not, the Italian media is focused on the effectiveness of Inter Milan. Clearly, Inter will have to play out of their skins tonight if they are to record a victory.
Il Corriere dello Sport says, “Challenging night at Marseille” and “Inter need to risk everything” is what Gazzetta dello Sport claims.
Tuttosport however sums up everything with a pretty catchy headline. “Ranieri playing for his life but Marseille come as arrogant.”
Basically, the future of Claudio Ranieri could come down on the outcome of the two-legged playoffs against Marseille.
Corriere della Sera calls Marseille, “A team more physical than technical” and also claims Marseille to have “an illusion of a hurt opponent”.
Eight years in the making?
The last time Inter lost to Marseille was way back in 2004 when http://www.senore.com/Football-soccer/Camel-Meriem-c8282 grabbed a 74th minute goal in Marseille’s 1-0 win at the San Siro over Inter Milan in the second leg of the UEFA Cup quarterfinals.
http://www.senore.com/Football-soccer/Javier-Zanetti-c18096 of Inter Milan remains the only survivor of the shock defeat which the world witnessed on April 14, 2004.
At that time, Inter Milan was managed by http://www.senore.com/Football-soccer/Japan-c2928) and Marseille’s dugout was occupied by Jose Anigo who is now the director of sports at the Canebiere club.
Optimism, not conviction
Olympique de Marseille fans are certainly bullish about their chances of recording an historic win over the beleaguered Serie A side. However, in Champions League outings, especially when it comes to the knockout phases, domestic form does not really count
much.
Marseille have a great chance of winning against an out-of-sorts Inter Milan but Les Phoceens fans should go back to the start of the 2011/2012 Ligue 1 campaign in which they had simply forgotten how to win.
However, despite their early woes in the Championnat, Marseille kept on picking crucial points in the Champions League which further proves that domestic form is not the only factor that determines the outcome of a Champions League game.
The case of German champions Borussia Dortmund in this season’s Champions League points out that good league form does not guarantee good performances in Europe, let alone European glory.
Disclaimer: Views expressed in this article are the writer’s own and do not reflect bettor.com’s editorial policy
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