Valbuena and Remy return for Marseille
Reuters - Friday 09 March 2012, 11:33
Brief news from Ligue 1
before this weekend's matches:
Forwards Loic Remy and Mathieu Valbuena and midfielder
Stephane Mbia return from injury for Olympique Marseille's trip
to Ajaccio on Friday, while Andre Ayew is sidelined with
left shoulder pain.
The match has been brought forward to allow Marseille to
prepare for their Champions League last-16 return leg at Inter
Milan on Tuesday.
"I know [the players] will have this match in mind. There's
nothing I can do to keep them from thinking about it", coach
Didier Deschamps told the club website.
Marseille, who have lost their last three league games, are
eighth with 39 points from 26 games.
Olympique Lyon, eliminated from the Champions League by
APOEL Nicosia on Wednesday, host third-placed champions Lille on
Saturday.
Lyon, who are seventh and trail Lille by seven points, need
to regroup if they are to take third place and qualify for the
European competition for the 13th consecutive season.
"We have 12 matches left. This game will be special because
Lille are third. It gives us a chance to revive our fortunes,"
coach Remi Garde told the club's television channel OLTV.
Lille have suffered a string of setbacks in defence, with
centre-back Mauro Cetto banned for two games while Marko Basa is
out injured. Goaleeper Mickael Landreau is doubtful with an ankle
sprain but was due to resume training on Friday.
Midfielder Thiago Motta is suspended for leaders Paris Saint-Germain's match at lowly Dijon on Sunday.
PSG regained the top spot last week when they beat
strugglers Ajaccio 4-1. They have 55 points, one clear of
second-placed Montpellier.
Montpellier host Caen on Sunday and will be glad to
welcome back Ligue 1 top scorer Olivier Giroud, who missed last
weekend's 1-1 draw with Dijon through suspension.
Left-back Benoit Tremoulinas could be omitted from
Girondins Bordeaux's line-up for their match at Brest on
Saturday after he was detained this week for allegedly
driving under the influence of alcohol.
"I made a mistake. I have no excuses. What I did was
unacceptable. I thank God I did not harm anyone," the player
told the club's website.