Panathinaikos (Gre) Marseille (Fra) prediction 2023-08-09

Panathinaikos (Gre) vs Marseille (Fra) prediction: EUROPE: Champions League – Qualification betting tips on match 2023-08-08 18:00.
Panathinaikos’ first UEFA Champions League (UCL) foray since 2015/16 has so far been a success, with a 5-3 aggregate win over Ukraine’s Dnipro-1 seeing them reach the third qualifying round alongside Athens rivals AEK. It was the first time since 2012/13 that Panathinaikos had notched up five goals in a two-legged UCL tie, and they'll be hoping to eclipse the journey they made to the play-off round on that occasion.

A far more difficult test likely awaits the Greek Super League runners-up against Marseille, not least because Dnipro were hit by a widespread bout of food poisoning prior to the second leg. The Ukrainians’ depleted squad helped reinforce Panathinaikos’ tag as pre-match favourites in that clash, but they’ll start as underdogs here as they seek to defy the odds and move one step closer to their first UCL group stage since 2010/11.

Marseille, the 1992/93 UCL winners, join the competition at this stage courtesy of a third-placed finish in Ligue 1, and will make a fresh start under Igor Tudor’s successor Marcelino – or should that now be Marseillino? Whilst stopping short of changing his name, the new boss has promised to uphold the club’s “values and culture” and demonstrate the “mentality of winning every game”.

In the 11 years that Marseille have endured without a trophy, Marcelino has won the Copa del Rey (2018/19 with Valencia) and the Supercopa de España (2020/21 with Athletic Bilbao), whilst progressing beyond the Europa League group stage on three separate occasions. He therefore has a wealth of experience that the club hopes will see them improve on last season’s fourth-placed finish in UCL Group D (W2, L4).

Players to watch: Whilst the attention was on Panathinaikos’ three new overseas signings – Tonny Vilhena, Filip Đuričić and Tin Jedvaj – against Dnipro, it was Andraž Šporar who bagged his second, third and fourth continental goals for the club, opening the scoring inside 15 minutes in both legs. Meanwhile, Marseille midfielder Matteo Guendouzi scored in the opening half an hour in their fourth and fifth games of the 2022/23 UCL group stage.

Hot streak: Marseille’s six UEFA games against Greek opposition this century were all won or lost (W4, L2) by a one-goal margin.