Toulouse have an opportunity to avenge a lopsided 6-1 defeat against Marseille from earlier this season when they welcome Les Olympiens to Stadium de Toulouse for a Ligue 1 encounter on Sunday. Since that aforementioned loss, Les Pitchouns have points in six of their previous seven domestic outings, defeating Rennes 3-1 last weekend, while Marseille moved to within five points of the leaders Paris Saint-Germain thanks to a 2-0 triumph over Clermont.
Heading into this match, Philippe Montanier’s men have 32 points after 23 league fixtures, the most for this club at this stage of a top-flight campaign since 2011-12, when they collected 34 points and ended the season in eighth. With 16 points taken in the top flight this year, Toulouse have accumulated the second-most among Ligue 1 sides in 2023, behind only Monaco, who have collected 17 over that same period.
It has been a long time since they defeated Marseille on home soil, losing their last three league games against them at Stadium de Toulouse, with their previous victory versus OM coming during the 2006-07 season (3-0).
Marseille have bounced back nicely since their 3-1 defeat at home to Nice earlier this month, knocking PSG out of the Coupe de France (2-1) and blanking Clermont all in less than a week. Their domestic victory last Saturday was the fifth straight for them away from home in this competition, while OM have not conceded in three successive Ligue 1 fixtures on the road.
With 15 wins in 23 league contests this season, it matches their highest total at this stage of a top-flight campaign, with Les Minots finishing in a top-four position by the end of their previous four domestic seasons in which they managed such a tally. Igor Tudor’s men have been in fine form domestically for some time now, losing just one of their previous 11 fixtures, scoring in all of those games for a total of 25 goals.
Marseille have not allowed a goal in the opening half away from home all year, conceding only once on the road in this competition in 2023. Their 3-0 defeat at Toulouse during the 2006-07 Ligue 1 campaign was not only the last time they lost to them away from home, but it was also the last time that Le Tefece defeated them in regulation time of any competition.
