Olympiakos and Marseille kick-off their Champions League campaigns on Wednesday at the Stadio Georgios Karaiskaki, with both teams eying up possible qualification for the knockout stages.
The group seems relatively open beyond Manchester City, who will be expected to top the group. However, these two will fancy their chances of competing with Porto for qualification for the knockout stages of European football’s elite competition.
Of the two teams, Olympiakos are in the better form, as they have taken ten points from their first four league games of the Super League campaign. When it comes to the Champions League, the Greek giants eliminated Omonia Nicosia in a play-off to book their group stage spot.
They struggled for victories in last season’s group stages in a section with eventual European champions Bayern Munich and also the previous season’s finalists Tottenham.Their only victory in that group stage came on gameweek six when they dispatched of Serbian outfit Red Star Belgrade.
One positive for Olympiakos in the Champions League of late is their home record, as they have won five of their last seven home matches in the competition. Only European champions Bayern Munich have beaten them on home soil in that stellar run of games.
Marseille have endured a highly inconsistent start to their campaign. OM head into this game four games unbeaten, but they have won just one of their last five matches.
The French side will be looking to improve an awful recent record in the Champions League, as they have suffered nine straight defeats in Europe’s elite competition. However, their last appearance in the competition was back in 2013. OM must also arrest a run of five straight defeats on their travels in the Champions League.
Forebet predicts that Marseille will continue where they left off seven years ago in the Champions League by suffering a defeat in a high-scoring encounter. A win would boost the home sides chances of clinching that all-important spot in the knockout stages of the competition.