Partners in crime!
Praise the footballing gods we actually won a game! A thrilling 2-1 victory over Valenciennes sees an end to our losing streak and renter talks of a podium finish. Okay maybe not talks of a top three finish but at least people wont be laughing at us this week. Lets just be happy right now, because Sunday we can screw things up all over again with Toulouse.
One would expect a team like Marseille to boss around a relegation stricken club and such was the case. As usual, early opportunities were squandered, looking at you Thauvin (9′) and Gignac (20′). Like so many times prior, I thought we would have gone into the half on parity or worse, trailing Valenciennes.
While we couldn’t make our own luck, we had to rely on VAFC to gift us a golden opportunity. Eloge Enza Yamissi being closed down by Thauvin and Valbuena botched a back pass which was intercepted by Gignac. Graciously Andre sidestepped Penneteau and fired the ball into the back of the net. This goal is Gignac’s tenth in nine games an impressive stat in its own right. So impressive is his form don’t be surprised to see the hashtag #GignacCapitaine floating around!
As always whats an OM game if we didn’t let the opposition back in almost immediately? In a bizarre goal straight out of PES /FIFA, Arthur Masuaku’s woud be cross somehow fond its way into goal. It almost reminded me of that strange goal that Maicon scored back in the 2010 World Cup. Whether or not Masuaku meant it or not, Mandanda clearly botched the ball. I’m almost always in his corner but it’s hard to defend such a glaring mistake
With the start of the second half, one could sense a return of optimism to Valenciennes style of play. For a good 15 minutes we were weathering the storm of a constant counter attack. Yet their hopes were squashed (thankfully) as Valbuena sent a beautiful lobbed pass to Thauvin, who ran the ball into the box and shot it towards the near post (63′). This beauty of a goal is Thauvin’s sixth on the season and proved to be enough in getting us the win!
While Gignac and Thauvin stole the show, lets not forget Lucas Mendes’s performance! Arguably his best game of the year it was a joy to watch. Winning every challenge, harassing Valenciennes’s defense at every turn, more of this please!
Undoubtedly this is a win that will raise spirits of both fans and players. “I think everyone stepped up to the occasion tonight in terms of commitment,” said Gignac. “That’s what was asked of us: to have, at the very least, a serious warrior’s mentality. It was a tough match; Valenciennes are playing for their lives and so are we. But now, we’re fifth again, and we’re only six points behind Lille. I hope we can keep it up, because we have two home games coming up, two very important matches. Our fans were great tonight.”
