Two goals after the break
Marseille got their season up and running at the Velodrome last night. A 4-0 rout of Strasbourg on Ligue 1’s opening weekend, with Amine Gouiri grabbing a brace.
The first half had been a frustration for the Algerian. He broke the deadlock in the 46th minute with a first-time finish, then calmly buried a penalty. Keyliane Abdallah (89th) and Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg (90th+6) added two more in the closing stages.
Used at the tip of Marseille’s 4-2-3-1, Gouiri was given plenty of freedom to roam. “I play as the No 9 but the coach gives us complete freedom. There’s lots of movement, technical links that are working really well,” he said after the match.
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A player who has taken his knocks
Last season was tougher. Injuries, a lack of luck, and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang breathing down his neck all made things harder. Even so, Gouiri finished with 11 goals and 5 assists in 28 competitive appearances.
The 26-year-old is also back under Bruno Genesio, the head coach who handed him his OL debut in 2017 before giving him another lift at Rennes in 2022. Third time around for the pair, same old effect.
Genesio was quick to put the performance in a team context. “He helped, but he also benefited from the team’s work. On the first goal, several players were involved in the move. Igor Paixao deserves credit too,” the coach said.
A brace arriving right in the middle of transfer season
The timing makes life awkward. The transfer window closes in a few days and Gouiri has been tracked in Spain for weeks. A start like this won’t exactly scare off the suitors.
Marseille are not ruling out more exits before the window shuts. “Now we’ll keep doing what we’ve been doing for the last seven weeks, stay serious, and I hope we’ll have a competitive squad on September 1,” Genesio said. It tells you plenty about the uncertainty still hanging over the Marseille squad.
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