Marseille will play at home against Benfica in the second leg of the Europa League semi-final. The match will be held on 18 April. Marseille vs Benfica: betting and prediction, bookmakers’ odds and statistics.
Marseille
Playoff Performances: In the 1/16 finals of the Europa League, Marseille beat Shakhtar (2:2 away, 3:1 at home) and Villarreal (4:0 at home, 1:3 away).
In the first game of the quarter-finals against the current opponent, the team lost away 1:2, so to reach the semi-finals, they needed to win by a difference of two goals.
Last matches: The Provansals lost to Lille (1:3) in the last round of their national championship on someone else’s field.
This failure extended the South’s series of defeats to five matches. The total difference in these matches was 2-12.
Will not play: Merlin, Sarr, Onana, Meite, Clauss, Rongier, and Nadir are injured and will not play. There are no disqualified players.
Team Condition: Marseille lost its last five matches in all tournaments after five consecutive wins.
During this series of failures, the club got closer to Europa League relegation and fell out of the European Cup zone in the French league, where they occupied only ninth place.
Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang is the top scorer for the team and the Europa League, scoring 10 goals.
Benfica
Playoff Performances: in the 1/16 finals of the Europa League, Benfica got past Toulouse (2:1 at home, 0:0 away) and Rangers (2:2 at home, 1:0 away).
In the first game of the quarter-finals against the current opponent, the team won at home with a score of 2:1, so it is enough to play a draw to reach the semi-finals.
Last matches: In the previous round, the Portuguese Primera Lissabonians won. On their field, they defeated Moreirense (3:0).
This match extended the Eagles’ winning streak to two games in different tournaments – the Europa League and the Portuguese championship.
Will not play: there are no injured or disqualified players.
Team Condition: In the last four matches in all tournaments, Benfica suffered one defeat with two wins and one draw.
Although such results allow the team to have a good chance of reaching the semi-finals of the Europa League, they risk losing the championship race in Portugal. They are four points behind leaders Sporting, who have played one less match.
Angel Di Maria is the team’s top scorer in the Europa League with four goals.
Betting stats
- Marseille lost in the last five matches
- In the previous four Benfica matches, more than 2.5 goals were scored
- Benfica have won six of their last eight games
Prediction and betting
Bookmakers’ odds: Marseille is the favorite ahead of the upcoming game. Its victory is estimated at 2.40. A draw – at 3.50, Benfica’s victory – at 2.90.
Prediction: In three of the guests’ last four matches, both teams scored. In all of these games, more than 2.5 goals were scored.
At the same time, in three of the home team’s last five matches, both of these odds have worked.
Bet: both teams will score more than 2.5 goals for 1.97.
Prediction: The riskier prediction is that the visitors will not lose and will score more than 1.5 goals because this scenario has been realized in three of their last four matches.
Bet: Benfica will not lose and total more than 1.5 goals for 2.03.
