Roberto De Zerbi’s rebuilt Marseille team can give PSG a genuine title challenge | Marseille

CThe klaxon of the story sounds: there’s a Ligue 1 title race on! A valiant Paris Saint-Germain battled to a valiant victory over Le Havre on Friday despite losing their superstar striker Kylian Mbappé to Real Madrid and his likely replacement, Gonçalo Ramos, to injury. Les Parisiens now trail Roberto De Zerbi’s all-conquering Olympique de Marseille only on goal difference.

While the truth doesn’t quite stretch that far, it does appear that OM’s audacious transfer plans are paying off this summer, following the opening weekend of the season in France. In a summer where concerns over broadcasting deals have seen many recent surprise packages (Lille, Lens, Reims) restrict their spending, while other European contenders (Monaco, Lyon) have added more depth or promising talent than marquee players, Marseille have been as bold as ever in signing eight players who hope to slot into De Zerbi’s first-choice XI.

Leading the way, of course, is the controversial signing of Mason Greenwood, a player whose abandoned legal case saw him leave Manchester United, his move to Ligue 1 branded “against the values ​​of the club and the city” by the mayor of Marseille. There is no doubt that the club are being cautious with Greenwood – he was left out of the team’s trip to Sunderland for a pre-season friendly, with his absence officially attributed to injury. Even De Zerbi, known for his vociferous defence of his players, alluded to this after the game, saying: “I’m happy he scored. It will calm the controversy surrounding his arrival.”

Those controversies are unlikely to go away. There is, however, some truth in Marseille’s overall transfer strategy. Of the 11 players who started the 5-1 win away to Brest – the team that finished third last season – six were not in last season’s squad, and a further three new arrivals will be fit or returning from suspension in the coming weeks.

There have been casualties, of course. Ismaïla Sarr and Iliman Ndiaye were sent back to England with little net loss after indifferent seasons at the Velodrome, while veterans Jonathan Clauss and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang were also sold despite having stronger campaigns. De Zerbi has also placed Chancel Mbemba, Jordan Veretout and Samuel Gigot in the proverbial loft, the three training away from the first team.

Gigot and Mbemba are hardly world-class, but with the departure of Clauss and that of goalkeeper Pau López, De Zerbi would start the season with an almost completely new defence, with only Leo Balerdi and Quentin Merlin remaining as players who were regulars last season. Balerdi, captain of the evening, will probably be paired with Lilian Brassier, so impressive for Brest last season, and with Merlin playing on the left and Amir Murillo on the right.

In midfield, another loanee, Pierre-Emile Højberg from Tottenham, has arrived and he looks set to pair Ismaël Koné, a dynamic young Canadian international signed from Watford, with De Zerbi’s 4-2-3-1, with Geoffrey Kondogbia also an option. The front four, on the evidence of Saturday night, will be the team’s crowning jewel, even if Amine Harit departs in this window, which is still a possibility.

Greenwood, playing on the right, scored twice, while Luis Henrique, a player who has only scored twice since arriving from Botafogo in 2020, did the same, with Harit adding two assists. Elye Wahi, another promising young attacker who will be motivated to improve on his disappointing season with Lens (and who is still only 21), led the attack ably and added a goal himself. With the likes of Faris Moumbagna and the highly-touted Inter loanee, Valentín Carboni, also in the squad, there is no shortage of attacking depth.

Bearing in mind the excessive power of the DNCG, the famous financial watchdog of French football, this entire reconfiguration was achieved with minimal net outlay, expected to be in the region of €10 million. The sales of players such as Veretout, Harit and Mbemba could further balance the books in the coming two weeks.

Without European football to compete with – Marseille were weighed down by last year’s run to the Europa League semi-finals – this team does indeed have the potential to be a title contender. As compelling as De Zerbi’s team were in attack, they also looked worryingly loose at the back, with new goalkeeper Gerónimo Rulli making more saves (four) than his counterpart, Marco Bizot.

Brest were unstoppable at times last season, but as PSG and Rennes showed last weekend, they are far from the only dangerous team in the league. Marseille will definitely need to see their defence shape up more convincingly in the coming weeks. Still, it is a rare moment to see a team in Ligue 1 make wholesale changes and go at such a pace.

Given De Zerbi’s performances at Brighton, it would not be unreasonable to expect the title race to be more exciting than it has been in the last three seasons, a testament to the club’s management’s boldness this summer.

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Part of the reason why any credence needs to be given to Marseille’s title bid will be how PSG’s season unfolds. Ramos’ injury is indeed serious – the Portuguese striker requires surgery and could be out until the new year. Even if Randal Kolo Muani is a capable option in attack, Luis Enrique’s ability to rotate his team will be paramount once the team returns to Europe. After spending much of the last three transfer windows building a younger, more cohesive squad, could the reigning champions be forced to buy a big name in the likes of Victor Osimhen or Jadon Sancho to bolster their attacking options?

Alongside PSG, Rennes was the other team to put in a dominant performance at the weekend, beating Lyon 3-0. Steve Mandanda saved a penalty, but goals from regulars Amine Gouiri and Benjamin Bourigeaud saw Rennes shine in a game that could have been tough after a long list of departures, playing a solid but optimistic 4-3-1-2 that morphed into a 3-4-3 in possession with the wing-backs, Alidu Seidu and Lorenz Assignon, able to push forward at will. The Bretons will face smarter (and better organised) opponents than Lyon this season, but with no European football to play for, Julien Stéphan will have ample opportunity to build on this result.

Finally, a word about Auxerre. Their 2-1 home win over Nice was probably the shock result of the weekend – even with Les Aiglons missing the injured Terem Moffi and others – but the underlying numbers tell a different story. Under Christophe Pélissier, the hosts had more shots on target and were not far off a draw in possession. Just as his Amiens teams of the recent past have punched above their weight after promotion, Auxerre can do the same.