Kevin Gameiro scored an added-time equaliser as Strasbourg snatched a 2-2 draw at home to Marseille on Saturday and prevented OM from warming up for their decisive UEFA Champions League game with Tottenham Hotspur with a win.
THE MATCH
Spurs arrive at the Stade Vélodrome on Tuesday when OM need to win to reach the knockout stages, but Igor Tudor's men will head into the match without a victory in four league games after Gameiro's added-time strike that gave the hosts a deserved point.
Things had looked bad for Julien Stéphan's side as OM, who had lost their three previous games after an unbeaten first nine matches of the campaign, started strongly. Dimitri Payet — restored to the starting line-up — skipped past a number of defenders before teeing up Bamba Dieng, whose effort was cleared off the line (6').
The Senegal international, who was not included on OM's squad list for European competitions and had looked set to leave the club in the summer, then grabbed his first goal of the season, latching onto Pau Lopez's long clearance to lob Matz Sels (8').
Strasbourg, without a win in six home games, then required Sels to keep out Cengiz Ünder (16') before Habib Diallo had their first chance, but the former Metz man drabbed his effort wide (24'). Ünder hit a post (26') before Issa Kaboré doubled the visitors' lead: the on-loan Manchester City wing-back applying the finishing touch to a Jonathan Clauss cross (35') for his first league goal for OM.
The visitors were in command, but Jordan Veretout's strong tackle that led to the ball striking Lopez's crossbar, suggested the scoreline was not necessarily set in stone (38'). Ünder should have given them a more comfortable advantage, but failed to finish from close range (58'), and when Strasbourg pulled one back through Lebo Mothiba — a half-time replacement for Diallo — 14 minutes from time, OM were wobbling.
The hosts piled forward, and after Lopez had produced a double save to deny Gameiro (89'), the former Paris Saint-Germain striker struck a superb left-foot effort beyond OM's Spanish goalkeeper to give Strasbourg an unexpected point and a 14th league draw of 2022.
THE PLAYER: Pau Lopez
Marseille owe their goalkeeper for not only producing the late double save from Gameiro that helped them avoid a morale-sapping defeat, but also for the assist he provided for the opening goal.
THE STAT: 22
Clauss has had 22 goal involvements since the start of last season, scoring six, making him the most productive defender across Europe's top five leagues.
