Marseille vs AEK Athens FC prediction: EUROPE: Europa League – Group Stage betting tips on match 2023-10-25 16:45.
A change in the dugout hasn’t exactly translated into an upturn in form for struggling Marseille, who’ve won just one of their four matches since appointing legendary midfielder Gennaro Gattuso as their manager (D1, L2). Their latest setback, a 1-0 defeat at Nice, left the Olympians in mid-table in Ligue 1 and stuck in a bit of a rut, with their last eight outings across all competitions yielding just one win (D4, L3).
Two of those stalemates came in the UEFA Europa League (UEL), which represents a decent start to their Group B campaign that they’ll be looking to build upon against leaders AEK Athens. A formidable H2H record against Greek opposition ought to inspire confidence (W8, D1, L3), while the Orange Vélodrome is proving a happy home for Marseille, as they’re unbeaten in six matches there this term (W4, D2), whilst they’ve lost just one of the last 13 European matches they’ve hosted (W7, D4).
AEK Athens will be looking to buck that trend and bring with them strong European away form (W8, D5, L7), a sequence that includes a 3-2 win at Brighton on matchday one. That result, combined with a 1-1 draw with Ajax, leaves the Greek champions on the Group B summit ahead of this round, and they’ve been in strong form domestically too, with a brace of 3-0 league wins keeping them in the early title discussions.
That said, facing French opposition remains daunting for the Double-Headed Eagle, as AEK have won just one of their 19 games against sides from France (D7, L11). That record gets even worse on the road, as they’ve never won away to a French opponent (D2, L7), while they’ve found the net just once on their last eight visits – marking them out as underdogs for this trip to Marseille.
Players to watch: Veteran Marseille forward Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang has rediscovered his form in France, directly contributing to five goals in his last six appearances (G3, A2) – including a brace against Ajax on matchday two. AEK’s Niclas Eliasson is in equally sparkling form, having a direct hand in four goals across his last two matches (G1, A3)!
Hot stat: Across AEK’s last nine matches, 16 goals have been scored before half-time.