Marseille vs Newcastle prediction: South of France trip should suit Magpies

Newcastle United make the trip to Marseille in the Champions League tonight, hoping they can finally find some form on the road (8pm, TNT Sports 2 & Discovery+).

They should be full of confidence following their 2-1 win over Manchester City on Saturday, but they have lost their last three away games.

Their form has been better in this competition, though with one win from their only away match so far, beating Union St-Gilloise 4-0 at the beginning of October.

Since then, they have also beaten Benfica and Athletic Bilbao at St James’ Park, without conceding a goal. They have only conceded twice so far in the competition, with both coming in the 2-1 defeat by the five-time champions Barcelona, although that defensive record could be tested by a free-scoring Marseille side.

Newcastle currently sit sixth in the Champions League table, with nine points, and are 7/4 with betting sites to qualify for the last 16 via a top-eight finish. The picture isn’t quite so rosy for the Magpies’ opponents, who have just three points so far after a disappointing start to their campaign.

Domestically, they sit second in Ligue 1, two points behind the leaders Paris Saint-Germain, but in this competition, they have lost to Real Madrid, Sporting and Atalanta, while their only win so far came at home to Ajax when they triumphed 4-0.

Based on those results, it’s no surprise that Newcastle are the favourites for the win in the Champions League odds.

There are a lot of familiar faces at Marseille, not least manager Roberto De Zerbi, who will know exactly what to expect from Newcastle after his spell at Brighton in the Premier League.

We could also see former Arsenal striker Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang line up in attack alongside former Manchester United forward Mason Greenwood, with the pair both on target in Friday’s 5-1 win away at Nice.

Aubameyang opened the scoring before Greenwood netted twice to take his tally for the season to 11 goals from 16 games. Former Brentford, Brighton and Everton forward Neal Maupay could also feature after making his first appearance of the season on Friday, coming on as a very late substitute.

This will be only the third meeting between the two sides, and the previous two came in the semi-finals of the 2003/04 Uefa Cup. After a goalless first leg in England, Marseille secured a 2-0 home victory in the return leg to go through to the final, where they were beaten 2-0 by Valencia.

The French side don’t have the best record against English sides and are without a win in their last 12 matches, drawing three and losing nine while scoring just five goals. Their last win came against Chelsea back in December 2010, when they beat them 1-0 in this competition.

A draw seems an unlikely outcome with none of Marseille’s last 24 matches in the Champions League group stage/league phase finishing level.

Their most recent stalemate came on 1 November 2011, a 0-0 draw at Arsenal, and football betting sites are offering 27/11 on tonight’s match ending all square.

Following the 2-1 win over City, confidence should be high in the Newcastle camp as they bid to take another step towards qualifying for the knockout stages. They have lost only two of their last 13 Uefa competition group stage/league phase matches away from home, winning five and drawing six.

OM have dropped six points from winning positions in the competition this season, which is more than any other side. They’re the only side to have lost multiple matches in which they scored the opening goal, with two defeats against Real Madrid and Sporting CP.

Marseille vs Newcastle prediction 1: Newcastle to win & BTTS - 17/5 Unibet

Newcastle have scored in their last 12 matches, with the goals spread throughout the squad, following the departure of last season’s leading scorer, Alexander Isak.

Anthony Gordon has scored four goals in this competition and has been directly involved in five goals in four Champions League games this season, with only Victor Osimhen having more combined in the current edition, with six.

He missed the win over City with a hip injury, but should he be passed fit, he’s available at 10/3 to score anytime on football betting apps.

Harvey Barnes has three goals in the competition, including two in the 3-0 win over Benfica. He also scored both goals in the 2-1 win over City at the weekend, taking his tally for the season to six from 18 games, which is just three less than he scored in 40 games last season.

Marseille vs Newcastle prediction 2: Barnes to score or assist - 8/5 BetMGM

Marseille: The French side are still missing forward Amine Gouiri through injury, and will also be without defenders Michael Amir Murillo and Nayef Aguerd.

Newcastle: Kieran Trippier missed the match with City due to injury, and is a doubt for the game, while Lewis Hall could miss out with his return from injury being managed. He was replaced after 77 minutes on Saturday, but the fact that he has spoken to the press could mean he will start at the Stade Vélodrome.

Marseille (3-4-2-1): Rulli; Pavard, Egan-Riley, Balerdi; Weah, Hojbjerg, O’Riley, Emerson; Greenwood, Paixao; Aubameyang

Newcastle (4-3-3): Pope; Livramento, Schar, Botman, Hall; Guimaraes, Tonali, Joelinton; Murphy, Woltemade, Barnes

Betfred are refunding losing bet builders across this week's Champions League fixtures, including Marseille's clash with Newcastle, with punters receiving up to £10 back in free bets if their bet doesn’t win.

To claim this offer, opt in via Betfred's promotion page before heading to the bet builder section in the Marseille against Newcastle match market. Your bet builder must include at least three selections and have combined odds of 3/1 or greater.

Winning bet builders will be settled normally, but if your wager falls short, Betfred will return your stake as a free bet up to £10. Any refunded free bets can only be redeemed on future bet builder markets.

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