Marseille vs Toulouse prediction: FRANCE: Ligue 1 betting tips on match 2022-12-28 20:00.
The World Cup break did not come at the best of times for Marseille, who were on a two-game winning streak in Ligue 1 after a disastrous October (D1, L3), capped off by a superb 3-2 away win against fellow top-four contenders Monaco. That victory saw them trail until the 83th minute, leading coach Igor Tudor to praise his team's “mentality”, while quoting veteran Dimitri Payet as an example, with the midfielder assisting twice from the bench.
The Olympians have every right to believe they can continue where they left off as they now face Toulouse, a side they hold a 19-game unbeaten H2H streak against (W11, D8), while winning the previous six! Tudor will have to do without three key midfielders however, with Mattéo Guendouzi, Jordan Veretout, and Amine Harit not expected to feature, so this may not be straightforward.
Unlike their hosts, Toulouse could hardly have dreamt a better moment for the World Cup interruption, as the newly-promoted outfit had lost their last three Ligue 1 games. However, each of those defeats came against teams sitting in the top six ahead of this round, leading to coach Philippe Montanier describing their 2-1 loss at Rennes before the international break as “encouraging”.
Despite those recent bumps, the Violets have enjoyed a solid start on their return to the top-flight, opening up a three-point gap to the relegation zone ahead of this contest. Improving away performances could be the difference between relegation and safety for Toulouse come June, as they sit in the bottom four of the Ligue 1 five-game away form standings (D1, L4), suggesting they might have to wait to break their ten-year duck at Marseille (D3, L6 since).
Players to watch: Marseille’s midfielder Payet has contributed to more goals against Toulouse than any other Ligue 1 club (G6, A9 in 25 Ligue 1 meetings). Toulouse will hope Rafael Ratão can be the man of the moment however, considering they’ve avoided defeat in the three league games he scored in this campaign (W1, D2), including two road trips (W1, D1).
Hot streak: Toulouse’s 11 regular-season league matches played on a Thursday in the 2000s have all featured under 2.5 goals.