´Step by step´ for table-topping Marseille: coach

Marseille may have climbed to the top of the French league in midweek but coach Didier Deschamps is keeping his feet firmly on the ground.

“‘Step by step’ as the English say. To be at the top is one thing, to remain there until the last day of the season is another,” cautioned the 1998 World Cup-winning captain.

The last fortnight has proved to be memorable on two fronts for the south coast giants, who lifted the League Cup to end a 17-year trophy drought and now occupy pole position in the title race.

Wednesday’s 3-0 home defeat of Sochaux saw Deschamps’ men claim the summit with 59 points, two clear of Lyon, Montpellier and Auxerre who have all played one game more.

Bordeaux, smarting after being knocked out of the Champions League by Lyon, are placed fifth on 56 points but with one game in hand on Marseille, who aim to further their title claims against Nice on Sunday.

Deschamps, who was skipper of Marseille’s 1992 title-winning side, added in an interview with the club’s official website: “We’ll see what happens, there are still many obstacles to overcome.

“We’re all fighting for the same objective and there are still lots of points to play for. We’ve got a tough programme with another match coming up on Sunday and more to come next week.

“We’ll enjoy and appreciate this but the important thing is to continue doing what we’re capable of.”

Marseille have made a remarkable recovery after a 2-0 loss to Montpellier at the end of January left them in seventh place and a yawning 12 points off the then-leaders Bordeaux, their title hopes seemingly shot.

Deschamps reflected: “After Montpellier I didn’t believe we were at rock bottom and likewise after Sochaux I’m not going to jump up to the ceiling. I’ve always believed in the potential of this team… and now we are achieving some interesting things.”

Lyon, fresh from securing their first ever passage to the Champions League semi-finals, host Lille, while the side they knocked out in the all-French quarter-final, Bordeaux, are up in the French capital to play Paris Saint Germain.

Marouane Chamakh, who is leaving Bordeaux at the end of the season, commented after Wednesday’s second leg win but aggregate loss to Lyon: “We have to focus on the championship to try to defend our title.”

Bordeaux coach Laurent Blanc was pleased to see his side bounce back from three straight defeats, including the League Cup final loss to Marseille.

“It was important to win to stop the haemorrhage of defeats after three in a row,” he said. “But we’re very unlucky at the moment, both on the pitch and with injuries (captain Alou Diarra and centre-back Marc Planus came off against Lyon).

Blanc added: “We’ll try to freshen things up to focus on this match against Paris, which is difficult because we play three days later and we’re losing players.”

Lyon midfielder Jeremy Toulalan meanwhile warned his teammates not to let the lure of a place in the Champions League final distract them from domestic issues.

“The priority is still the league. We can have a party if we get to the final and we win it.”

Fixtures

Saturday (1800GMT unless stated)

Le Mans v Montpellier, Lens v Boulogne, Lorient v Rennes, Monaco v Valenciennes, Sochaux v Saint Etienne, Toulouse v Grenoble, PSG v Bordeaux (2000)

Sunday (1600GMT unless stated)

Lyon v Lille, Nancy v Auxerre, Marseille v Nice (2000)