PLAYER RATINGS | Reims 3-1 Marseille: Nakamura and Diakhon dent OM Champions League hopes | OneFootball

Marseille’s hopes of qualifying for the Champions League took a huge blow on Saturday afternoon as a clinical Reims side claimed their first victory under Samba Diawara.THE MATCHOlympique de Marseille returned to action following the international break and were looking to get back to winning ways against Stade de Reims after a 3-1 defeat at the Parc des Princes. With the race for Europe tightening following Strasbourg’s win over Lyon (4-2) over Lyon on Friday evening, it was imperative for Roberto De Zerbi’s men to go into the final quarter of the season with a win under their belts. In fact, with Marseille’s six competitors for the European spots in action this weekend, it would be the perfect opportunity to find some breathing room in the search for Champions League football. But Reims would rip up that script on Saturday afternoon…

Roberto De Zerbi’s men started the game incredibly high up the pitch, as Reims dropped into a low block of two rigid defensive lines. Dominating early possession, Amine Gouiri got the first half-chance after Adrien Rabiot’s cushioned header to set him up, but the Algerian’s strike was blocked by a combination of Okumu and Kipré. After weathering the initial storm which saw OM hold 86% of possession, Reims managed to break out of their defensive dugout and start to move up the pitch with Nakamura and Ito’s driving runs.Reims rip up the script

Six games and over 11 hours of football without a goal, Reims would manage to break the curse and get ahead right at the point they were under most pressure. A long sweeping ball found Diakhon on the right side, who managed to find Keito Nakamura. The Japan international found some space and shifted to the right before firing home past Rulli to put the Champagne region side ahead.

Adrien Rabiot’s header was denied on the line only minutes later from Amine Gouiri’s corner, as Akieme’s header stopped what looked like a certain goal to get Les Phocéens back into the game. Half-time came and De Zerbi ran the changes as Pol Lirola and Quentin Merlin came off for Ismaël Bennacer and Amar Dedic to make their entry in the second period.

Yet it was substitute Amar Dedic who was at fault for losing the ball to Nakaruma, and the Japan international simply played Diakhon in behind who provided the finish past a helpless Geronimo Rulli to double Reims’ lead. And it wouldn’t stop there, Reims would hit on the counter attack once more and this time it was Valentin Atangana who skipped past the OM defence and chipped the ball past Rulli.Valentin Rongier managed to get on the scoresheet with a superb strike from the middle of the box but it would be too little too late for Les Olympiens, who fell to a third straight defeat and have dented their hope of Champions League football next season.

STADE DE REIMS PLAYER RATINGS

Yehvann Diouf – 8

A confident performance from the Reims keeper who used his stature to take the pressure off his side, collecting crosses and making several stops despite not necessarily being tested by OM. He would, however, be disappointed not to keep the clean sheet but nonetheless aided Reims to a vital three points in the dying minutes of the game with several fine stops.

Aurélio Buta – 5

Joseph Okumu – 6

Cédric Kipré – 6

Sergio Akieme – 6

Mamadou Diakhon – 7

The 19-year-old stepped up against Reims, finding the space and finding Nakamura for Champagne side’s opener. He then got involved in the action himself with a calm finish past Rulli before being taken off in the second period.

Valentin Atangana – 6

Mory Gbane – 5

Amadou Koné – 5

Keito Nakamura – 7

The Japan international was the key outlet for the hosts, and recorded the highest distance run during the game (12km). It was clear to see he was everywhere when Reims needed him most, scoring a classy opener before winning the ball to set up Diakhon for the second.

Junya Ito – 6OLYMPIQUE DE MARSEILLE PLAYER RATINGS Geronimo Rulli – 3

Pol Lirola – 4

Leonardo Balerdi – 4

Derek Cornelius – 4

Quentin Merlin – 4

Geoffrey Kondogbia – 3

Valentin Rongier – 5

Luis Henrique – 3

Adrien Rabiot – 4

Mason Greenwood – 2

In his return to the starting XI, the Englishman started well initially and looked sharp. Yet his level dropped lower and lower as the game went on, positioned deep to try and create an influence in possession but ultimately not arriving to create anything of substance. He still has everything to prove to De Zerbi if he wants to be successful long-term at Marseille.

Amine Gouiri – 2

Despite a few chances in the first period the Algerian was completely absent in the second half, much in the image of the rest of OM as they conceded twice to make a massive mountain to climb against Reims. A lack of movement in the final third really hurt Les Olympiens, and Gouiri was guilty of it more than most.

Others:

Amar Dedic – 4

Neal Maupay – 4

Bennacer – 5MATCH REACTION Valentin Atangana (Reims): “We knew we had to close off the inside passing lanes. It does us a lot of good against a big team like Marseille, and we deserved it today. Well done to the whole team, we held it together defensively and we should celebrate it tonight.” Adrien Rabiot (Marseille): “It’s bad for us but it was also bad to show this spirit here. I feel like there are some players who don’t want to play in the Champions League.”“In duels we weren’t present. They had two weapons and that was set-pieces and counter attacks. We can’t defend like that. We need to have another mentality if we want to reach the Champions League, we need to have desire. It’s not a question of playing in a low block or not, it’s well above that.”GFFN | George Boxall