It promises to be a memorable night for Brighton & Hove Albion as they travel to Olympique de Marseille for their first ever European away game.
The stage is set for what is sure to be a historic night for the Seagulls at Orange Velodrome as Roberto De Zerbi’s side seek their first points in the Europa League.
Albion have been rotating their squad as they seek to juggle the demands of the Premier League and their first ever foray into European football.
And they know they will be in for a tough test against the French side, for which Gennaro Gattuso took charge just a week ago.
Team news
Albion have a number of injury worries ahead of their trip to the south of France. Pascal Gross hasn’t featured since matchday one against AEK Athens, which is also the case for James Milner who has suffered with a muscular issue.
Adam Lallana played the final twelve minutes in Albion’s defeat at Chelsea in the Carabao Cup last Wednesday before missing out at Aston Villa at the weekend.
All three will hope to have recovered in time and add experience to the line-up in Marseille.
A bigger doubt is Pervis Estupinan, with the left-back withdrawn at half-time at Villa Park on Saturday through injury.
Marseille will be without Geoffrey Kondogbia due to a groin issue, but should have both Iliman Ndiaye and former Watford ace Ismaila Sarr available after both featured against Monaco at the weekend.
Form Guide
In truth, neither side come into the key Group B clash in good form. Marseille come into the game winless in their last five outings.
The French side showed character in the opening group game to come from 2-0 down to draw 3-3 away at Ajax. Gattuso’s side would have hoped to gain some momentum from that point, but instead have lost the two matches that followed in Ligue 1 by an aggregate score of 7-2.
A 4-0 defeat in Paris followed, before they slipped to a 3-2 loss at Monaco on Saturday, despite leading twice in what was Gattuso’s first game as Marseille boss.
Brighton, meanwhile, have suffered back-to-back defeats, including a disappointing 6-1 reverse at Aston Villa on Saturday lunchtime. Boss De Zerbi has promised ‘a different Brighton’ ahead of this game, as they search for their first ever points in European football having lost 3-2 at home to AEK Athens on Matchday One.
Predicted line-ups
Marseille: 4-3-3: Lopez; Clauss, Harit, Mbemba, Murillo; Veretout, Rongier, Ounahi; Ndiaye, Aubameyang, Sarr.
Brighton: 4-2-3-1: Steele; Veltman, Dunk, van Hecke, Lamptey; Gross, Gilmour; Fati, Joao Pedro, Mitoma; Ferguson.
Key Players
The hosts will hope Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang’s European experience will help them seal their first win of the group stages. The former Arsenal captain has scored four times in Europe for Marseille already this season, including a brace as they fought back to earn a point at Ajax on Matchday One.
Lewis Dunk was a notable absentee for Albion in the defeat against AEK Athens on Matchday One, and he will be hoping to celebrate his inclusion in the latest England squad with a big win in the south of France. The skipper is hailed by the Brighton fans as ‘one of their own’ and three points tonight will mean a lot to the central defender.
Match Details
Where is the game being played?
This Europa League Group B Matchday Two fixture will take place at Marseille’s Orange Velodrome, in what will be Marseille’s first home game since September 17th.
What time is kick off?
The game is scheduled to get underway at 17:45 BST.
How can I watch?
Olympique de Marseille vs Brighton & Hove Albion is available to watch live on TNT Sports. Anyone without this subscription service can follow the game across social media.