After a terrible start to the match, OM made life difficult for Madrid right up to the last minute, conceding a slender defeat 2-1.
1-1 Niang (16th)
2-1 Raul Garcia (22nd)
Frustration is most definitely the feeling of the moment. Unfortunately. For the moment, after two matches in the Champions League OM are full of regrets. At the final whistle the Marseille players were as disappointed as they were two weeks ago against Liverpool. Just like against the English side, OM suffered at times during the match. They could quite easily have conceded more than two goals, notably at the start of the match. But this time around they also had the opportunities to change the course of the game, and write a different ending than the 2-1 defeat.
Erik Gerets had said that he was wary of the speed of the Atlético side. He spoke of a « machine which went off at 100km/h ». The start of the match was even quicker than that. The passing game of the Madrid side broke up the Marseille attacking movements right from the start. Aguero’s skill did the rest. Played in by Maxi Rodriguez, he beat Erbate, before firing past Mandanda (1-0). There were only 4 minutes on the clock and the evening promised to be long. Especially as the Argentinian managed to get into another one on one with the keeper, this time Mandanda was equal to it, and everyone breathed a sigh of relief. Just as they did when Taiwo cleared from Sinama-Pongolle.
Added to that the explosive atmosphere in the Vicente Calderon, and you will understand why OM seemed a little out of their depth in the first fifteen minutes.
But, OM managed to be efficient at 100%. From their first chance (apart from a shot from the kick-off), Marseille got themselves back into the game. Valbuena played Bonnart into the right hand corner. His cross was met by the head of an unmarked Niang, who knocked the ball home (16th, 1-1). This completely shocked an Atlético side who had up until then had be playing like a great European side.
The Spanish side, however, took it more as a warning than something to get carried away about. The score didn’t stay the same long enough for them to worry. Six minutes went by before Madrid retook control. A foul committed by Taiwo gave them a dangerously placed free-kick, on the left hand side. Raul Garcia deflected the ball into the net to give the Spaniards the advantage again (2-1).
At half time, Zubar came on for Erbate in the centre of defence.
Despite the permanent threat of the Madrid team, OM continued to believe that they could score at any moment. As they had done earlier on. The fact that the attacking four were afforded plenty of space made this thought quite plausible.
Like when Niang saw Leo Franco off his line, and was given the time to fire in his effort. The goalkeeper saved with the tip of his fingers, with a gesture that betrayed his surprise.
The game was in it’s 40th minute and it would have been a good moment to try a wipe away some doubts. As it would have been in first half stoppage time when a free kick from Taiwo was stopped by the wall.
This time Aguirre’s men had gotten the message. In the second half they played with a lot less flamboyance.
Two changes in quick succession kicked off the second half. Gerets made the decision to bring on Zubar in the place of Erbate and was then forced into bringing on Zenden who moved to the left wing after Ben Arfa had to come off through injury.
A clever back heel from Maxi Rodriguez (55th) and a Mandanda save from Sinama-Pongolle (62nd) were the only chances the Spaniards had to make the scoreline heavier. For the rest of the time OM had a maximum of possession of the ball but there were no more attacking movements that only last ditched defending could stop.
Fear seemed to have changed camps. Two shots grazed the uprights of Leo Franco’s goal. One from Valbuena (68th) and another from Niang in the 88th! Before a headed effort from Taiwo also missed the target. OM had come so close to equalising. Liverpool’s victory against Eindhoven (3-1) went some way to giving credence to the idea that points are there to be taken from the double opposition against PSV. Before having to pull of an exploit against the Reds and/or Atlético at the end of November and beginning of December.
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