PSG Favourites as Marseille Host Le Classique Amid Four-Game Losing Run
Paris Saint-Germain travel to Marseille on Sunday for the latest edition of Le Classique, with the Ligue 1 champions arriving at the Stade Vélodrome as clear favourites against a side in the midst of a damaging run.
Marseille have lost each of their last four matches in all competitions, a sequence that has intensified frustration among their supporters and left Bruno Genesio’s team needing a response in one of the season’s most charged fixtures. The meeting comes in the fifth round of the Ligue 1 campaign, with PSG seeking to keep their domestic momentum intact before their schedule becomes more demanding.
Genesio has made no attempt to downplay the scale of the task. The Marseille coach expects Luis Enrique’s side to bring the standard they have established in Europe, describing PSG as the version seen in Champions League football rather than an opponent likely to offer any margin for error in a derby.
“We have to believe we can do it, otherwise there is no reason to play,” Genesio said. “But we need to improve our level for the full 90 minutes.”
Marseille’s hopes of producing that improvement have been complicated by injuries and absences. Geoffrey Kondogbia and Tochukwu Nnadi will not be available, reducing Genesio’s options as he attempts to halt the losing streak against the reigning champions.
Genesio praises Enrique’s European record
The Marseille manager also offered a strong endorsement of his opposite number before the match, placing Enrique among the continent’s leading coaches. He pointed to PSG’s two successive Champions League triumphs, stressing that elite players alone do not make consecutive European titles achievable.
Genesio said Enrique’s work deserved greater recognition, adding that he enjoys the Spaniard’s manner in media briefings and hopes he remains unchanged. The praise underlined the stature PSG have built under Enrique, particularly through their recent European success.
For Marseille, the derby represents an opportunity to change the mood around the club despite the difficult form that precedes it. Their supporters have expressed anger after recent performances, but a positive result against their fiercest rivals would offer a route out of the current pressure.
PSG, however, will see the match as a chance to compound Marseille’s problems. An away win would extend their rivals’ troubled spell and strengthen the champions’ position as they seek to carry their rhythm through the early domestic rounds.
