Olympique de Marseille beats Rennes in Ligue 1 and secures a place in the Ligue des Campeos
Olympique de Marseille finished runners-up in the 2024-2025 French championship. OM secured their second place in the standings by beating Rennes (4-2) this Saturday during the 34th and final matchday of Ligue 1.
Two players who left OM this winter decided to make their mark during this evening in a festive Stade Vélodrome, a week after his team qualified for the Champions League. First, midfielder Koné: the Canadian international, on loan from Marseille after a disappointing first six months, surprised Rulli with a 30-meter shot deflected by Højbjerg (0-1, 14th). But the former Watford player had a less fortunate event afterward, awarding Marseille a penalty for handball in the box. Then it was Lilian Brassier, also leaving after only half a season at Marseille, who in turn conceded a penalty for a similar foul.
In pursuit of the Ligue 1 top scorer title, Greenwood perfectly took the first penalty to beat Samba (1-1, 21st). But the Englishman failed against the Rennes goalkeeper on his second attempt. He then redeemed himself by perfectly setting up Rabiot, voted best player of the season by Marseille fans this week, for the goal that allowed OM to take the lead (2-1, 38th). Then he scored a second goal, his 21st of the season in the league, with a right-footed shot into the box after having eliminated Assignon with a hook (3-1, 45th+1).
The pace slowed significantly after the break, and Samba was attentive to a Rowe shot and then a Gouiri header. Marseille lost their focus late in the match, perhaps also disturbed by the changes made by Robert De Zerbi. The decision to bring on Dedic, for example, was not very conclusive, as the full-back missed his introduction and overlooked Andrés Gomez for Rennes’ second goal (3-2, 77th).
Despite a tricky end to the match, and while Greenwood stumbled on Samba and missed the opportunity to finish as the sole top scorer in Ligue 1 (with 21 goals, he is tied with Ousmane Dembélé), OM secured their 20th victory of the season with a second goal from Rabiot in added time (4-2, 90th + 2). The party was not spoiled in a Vélodrome which gave a standing ovation to their former goalkeeper Mandanda, who came on in the final seconds of the match, for what will perhaps be his last match. A moving moment to end this beautiful evening in Marseille.
