Marseille seek to build on bright start ´at home´

Marseille play their first ‘home’ match of the new campaign against Lille this weekend aiming to consolidate their position as pre-season favourites to take their first title in almost two decades.

The fixture is being held in Montpellier as Marseille’s Velodrome stadium is still shut following the death of two stage hands setting up a Madonna concert last month.

“It’s a special game, we’d prefer all the same to be playing at the Velodrome in front of our fans and our surroundings. We know the reasons for this move and we don’t have a choice,” said midfielder Benoit Cheyrou.

Didier Deschamps’ team, runners-up last term, avoided an opening day slip-up at Grenoble and now face a Lille side who lost out to Lorient in their 2009-2010 curtain-raiser.

Deschamps, Eric Gerets’ successor, said there were more positives than negatives to be taken out of last weekend’s win and he will be counting on his men to maintain their favourable early impression in Sunday’s late match.

For striker Hatem Ben Arfa, Marseille, who signed no fewer than ten players in the close season, are on the right track.

He said: “There are lots of new players, that’s changed a lot compared to last year.

“We have to give them time to adapt. There’s a good atmosphere though, we felt that at Grenoble.”

Bordeaux, coached by Deschamps’ former France teammate and fellow 1998 World Cup winner Laurent Blanc, can steal an early march on their rivals with a result on the road at Sochaux 24 hours earlier.

Bordeaux took last season’s title by just three points to end Lyon’s seven-year grip on La Ligue.

The former multiple champions were only saved an embarrassing opening loss to minnows Le Mans by new signing Lisandro Lopez, who netted a last minute freekick to salvage a 2-2 draw.

They now face Valenciennes at their Stade Gerland.

Lyon boss Claude Puel was frustrated by last week’s draw, and said: “We have to be more consistent throughout the entire match. That’s what we’ve been looking for in all our pre-season friendlies.”

On his side’s second run out of the season Puel, with one eye on next week’s Champions League tie with Anderlecht, added: “It’s a league encounter which comes before a European one against two teams which play a very different style of football.

“Valenciennes turn up with a very solid defensive base.”

Like Lyon, Toulouse had some players on international duty this week, not least Andre-Pierre Gignac who saved France in Wednesday’s World Cup qualifier in the Faroe Islands.

The big striker produced his first goal for his country and he will be out to perform similar sterling work for his club when they host Saint Etienne in Saturday’s late kick-off.

Both teams are seeking to get off the mark after suffering defeats to Deschamps’ former side Monaco and Nice respectively.

Fixtures

Saturday (all 1700GMT unles stated)

Lens v Auxerre, Lorient v Montpellier, Lyon v Valenciennes, Nancy v Monaco, PSG v Le Mans, Sochaux v Bordeaux, Toulouse v Saint Etienne (1900GMT)

Sunday (all 1500GMT unles stated)

Boulogne v Grenoble, Nice v Rennes, Marseille v Lille (1900GMT at Montpellier)