Marseille failed in their goal of reaching the Champions League next season, though the campaign was not a complete failure for Rudi Garcia’s men, who lifted themselves back up to the level of an elite side in France thanks to a strong push for the top three but also a fine surge into the Europa League final, which may have seen them miss out on the podium domestically.
There was scepticism over the viability of their ‘Champions Project’ at the beginning of the season, which seemed justified in August as they tumbled down to 10th in the standings after five rounds, having been thumped in Monaco then soundly beaten at home by Rennes.
However, Garcia’s men would find their way thereafter, focusing on their domestic chores while fumbling their way through their Europa League group. In the first half of the season, Marseille were rarely spectacular, with the individual talents of Florian Thauvin often carrying them offensively as they struggled to find a system that suited them.
They were, however, proving surprisingly difficult to beat, with the backbone of their side reinforced by Luiz Gustavo, who was one of their outstanding players over the course of the campaign.
It would be 2018 before Marseille finally started to really come together. Dimitri Payet’s form improved, while so too did that of Valere Germain, who found life difficult playing a lone striker role. Nevertheless the goals were flowing in the first weeks of the year before a hiccup at the end of February as they were twice beaten by PSG.
While progress was made in Europe, OM’s domestic form was being affected, though not drastically. They lost at home to Lyon – one of just two defeats at the Velodrome – while they were held by the likes of Monptellier and Angers after key European matches. These results may well have cost them third place.
In the end, they came up painfully short in Europe, too, beaten 3-0 by Atletico Madrid after making such a positive start to the game. It rendered their 2-1 win over Amiens on the final day of the season worthless.
Marseille will settle for fourth this time around, but that will not be the case next season. More depth is needed, though.
