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| Wahbi KHAZRI of Montpellier during the Ligue 1 Uber Eats match between Marseille and Montpellier at Orange Velodrome on March 31, 2023 in Marseille, France. |
Marseille missed the chance to put some pressure on
Ligue 1 leaders Paris Saint-Germain as they were held to a 1-1 home draw by
Montpellier on Friday.
Igor Tudor’s second-placed side could have cut the
gap to PSG to four points with a victory ahead of the defending champions’
Sunday game against Lyon.
But instead, Marseille dropped points for the third
time in five league outings and could be overtaken by third-placed Lens when
they visit Rennes on Saturday.
“Today we weren’t good enough to win,” admitted
Tudor.
“The international break has cost us dearly. There
were too many mentally and physically tired players.
“We only had one training session together so I knew
it would be tough.”
Arnaud Nordin finished off a quick counter-attack to
give mid-table Montpellier a 12th-minute lead after a brilliant burst from
Wahbi Khazri.
Marseille levelled shortly before half-time as
Matteo Guendouzi stroked home a penalty awarded for handball.
But OM created little and Khazri went close to a
winner for Montpellier midway through the second period when he was denied by
home goalkeeper Ruben Blanco.
Marseille dominated possession late on but could not
find a goal which would have given them renewed hope of a first league title
since 2010 after PSG’s shock home loss to Rennes before the international
break.
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