By carrying out an XXL transfer window this summer with the arrivals of Aubameyang, Ndiaye, Kondogbia or Renan Lodi, Olympique de Marseille surely did not imagine making a trip to Amsterdam without a coach and with management leaving in the middle of september. This Thursday evening, the Olympians face Ajax Amsterdam on the first day of the Europa League. While OM are second in Ligue 1 while being undefeated and two points behind the Monegasque leader, a meeting Monday evening with the leaders of different supporter groups caused chaos in the Marseille city. Marcelino and his staff have left and Jorge Sampaoli’s former assistant, Pancho Abardonado finds himself as a “firefighter on duty”. At a press conference, the interim coach and former defender of the club was keen to support his players while returning to the ousting of the Spanish technician: “I learned about it very late last night through David Friio (his assistant) by telephone. It’s a source of pride for me to represent OM. I’m going to lead the group for the first time, but I think that the players are ready. They know the importance of this match. They know what awaits them, they know the context of the club before signing. We know that it can happen, in Marseille as in other clubs. The players must players respond. I have known everything at the club, all that was missing was the pros. I take it with great pleasure and I will continue to learn because I am a young coach. It is a source of pride, obviously. was one of my goals, even if it comes sooner than expected.”
On the Ajax side, the situation is no better than at OM: 5 points in four Eredivisie matches. While the Dutch club lost many executives or key players this summer such as Dusan Tadic, Davy Klaassen, Mohammed Kudus, Edson Alvarez (West Ham) and Jurrien Timber (Arsenal), Ajax bet on the Georgian international and former FC Metz striker, Georges Mikautadze. But another affair splashes the “Lancers”: a questionable transfer affair agitates the management of the club after the arrival for eight million euros of Borna Sosa, Croatian international through an agents’ office. Except that this same office is a minority shareholder in Matchmetrics GmbH, a football data company co-founded by Sven Mislintat (the club’s new sporting director) in 2016, in which he owns 35% of the shares. There is therefore suspicion of conflicts of interest. While the club has decided to open an internal investigation, first team coach Maurice Steijn decided to remain vague on this matter at a press conference: “I understand your questions, but it has nothing to do with the match against Marseille. The only thing I think about the sporting director is that it doesn’t help us sportingly, in our preparation. He is a shareholder in “a society. The most important thing is that the players are ready for Thursday. This whole thing makes us uncomfortable. It’s up to us to stay calm.”
What time does Ajax – OM start?
The start of the first day of the Europa League match between Ajax and Marseille is scheduled Thursday September 21 at 9:00 p.m. at the Johan Cruijff Arena in Amsterdam (Netherlands). The Italian Maurizio Mariani will be the referee of the match.
On which channel to watch Ajax – OM?
Holder of TV rights for the Europa League, Canal+ will broadcast the clash between Ajax and OM. The poster will also be available in plain text on W9.
How to follow Ajax – OM in streaming?
If you want to watch the Europa League match between Ajax Amsterdam and Olympique de Marseille on your computer, smartphone or tablet, you will need to subscribe to MyCanal or create an account on 6play.
What are the probable line-ups of Ajax Amsterdam and Olympique de Marseille?
Ajax: Gorter (L) – Gaaei, Sutalo, Hato, Sosa – Van Den Boomen, Taylor, Borges – Mikautadze, Bergwijn, Brobbey.
OM: Lopez (G) – Clauss, Mbemba, Gigot, R.Lodi – Rongier, Kondogbia, Veretout – Ndiaye, Vitinha, Aubameyang.
What are the Ajax – OM predictions?
- Betclic: Ajax: 2.45 / Draw: 3.70 / OM: 2.70
- Bwin: Ajax: 2.37 / Draw: 3.30 / OM: 2.65
- NetBet: Ajax: 2.42 / Draw: 3.50 / OM: 2.65
- Unibet: Ajax: 2.50 / Draw: 3.75 / OM: 2.80