PLAYER RATINGS | Marseille 0-1 Lens: El Aynaoui’s injury-time strike hands Sang & Or vital victory | OneFootball

Ligue 1 McDonald’s Matchday 25 08/03/2025THE MATCHWill Still punched the air with glee at the full-time whistle, high-fiving his assistant – and brother – with a palpable sense of emotion. The Anglo-Belgian has had a torrid couple of weeks recently, with Lens losing their last four matches on the bounce. Yet, that would change at the Vélodrome on Saturday night, as Neil El-Aynaoui’s last-gasp strike handed the Sang & Or a vital victory against a Marseille side that were all too often wasteful in front of goal.

Les Marseillais came into the game with enough motivation as it was to try and keep up their push to secure Champions League football, let alone with a Classique clash against Paris Saint-Germain on the horizon next weekend. Will Still’s side, on the other hand, were trying to put an end to a horrific run of four defeats in a row – the Vélodrome would be a tough place to get back on track. But not impossible.

Roberto De Zerbi’s men were on the front foot from kick-off, with Dedic finding some space in the box and unleashing a strike over the bar. After an initial wave of pressure from the hosts, Lens would begin to settle into the game. But the odd foray didn’t prove dangerous enough and OM quickly got back on the front foot. Quentin Merlin slipped Amine Gouiri through, and the Algerian poised himself well but managed to rattle the crossbar with his strike from just inside the box.

From out of nowhere Lens found themselves with a glorious chance to go in front as Wesley Saïd flicked through Andy Diouf one-on-one with Géronimo Rulli, but the Argentine made himself big and managed to pull off a fantastic save. It was then Matt Ryan’s turn to get in on the action as Amine Gouiri pulled off a lovely give-and-go with Højbjerg and the Australian Ryan parried away before tipping over Balerdi’s header from the following corner.

At half-time, Roberto De Zerbi opted to bring on his main man Mason Greenwood as well as Luis Henrique. Whilst it gave some more attacking impetus for OM, Les Olympiens almost made a mess of things when Valentin Rongier gave away the ball to Nampalys Mendy, and Andy Diouf bore down on goal. It was a mix of a Rulli and an OM defender’s leg which stopped the ball from going into the back of the net. Marseille struggled to deal with Lens’ low-block to the credit of Will Still’s setup, and De Zerbi had to call upon Neal Maupay to complete the attack in the closing phases of the game. Luis Henrique had a huge chance to put Les Olympiens ahead late on, but his volley was blasted over the bar. Neal Maupay had a glorious chance to put OM ahead just minutes later, when he was served through on goal from Rongier, twisting Sarr inside out and striking on goal but Matt Ryan was equal to make the save.

There would be a late twist to the tale, as Marseille failed to take advantage and simply didn’t have enough shots on goal. A ball was floated over the top for Deiver Machado in the third minute of added-on time, and the Colombian cut inside Rongier and put the ball on a plate for Neil El-Aynaoui who rocketed the ball into the roof of the net.OLYMPIQUE DE MARSEILLE PLAYER RATINGSGéronimo Rulli – 5

The Argentine once again has made a couple of outstanding saves and interventions to keep Lens at bay. A one-on-one with Wesley Saïd was the biggest of them all, as well as his save after Rongier’s defensive blunder in the second half which saw Andy Diouf race down on goal.

Quentin Merlin – 5Despite his popularity in the Marseille fan base dwindling somewhat in recent months, he provided one of his better performances in an OM shirt. He was energetic in the opening periods and combined well with Marseille’s midfield, doing his bit to help out a back three that was clearly trying to adapt in the opening phases of the game.

Geoffrey Kondogbia – 4

Leonardo Balerdi – 5The Argentine was imperious in the first half, keeping it all together at the back and providing the base for OM’s possession. He almost opened the scoring with his header which rattled the crossbar. He was a solid presence in the second period, and found himself on the line when Neil El Aynaoui struck his ball into the top corner – perhaps he would have been better served in a position to block the Moroccan midfielder’s strike on goal.

Valentin Rongier – 5The Frenchman adapted well to his role in OM’s back three, but he was simply doing too much and was stretched physically. Rongier tried to link up play between defence and midfield, and was attempting some driving runs that were effective on occasion. But finally the fatigue got to him, he let Machado turn inside to put the ball on a plate for Aynaoui to put Lens ahead.

Pierre-Emile Højbjerg – 5

Adrien Rabiot – 4

Ismaël Bennacer – 4

Bilal Nadir – 4

Amine Gouiri – 5A mixed performance from the Algerian international, who was dangerous in the first half and rattled the post with his strike from the edge of the box. Second half, he was less involved but De Zerbi opted to keep him on the pitch – but chances wouldn’t come in the latter phases of the game.Others:Mason Greenwood – 3Roberto De Zerbi said following the game that Greenwood was not in a fit 100% state to play, which was why he was on the bench officially speaking. Yet the Italian’s earlier criticism of the player in his pre-match press conference somewhat seemed justified after his outing against Nantes and now against Lens. Of course, Greenwood is speedy, energetic and can make the difference – but he seemed to lack that killer edge tonight. Luis Henrique – 4RACING CLUB DE LENS PLAYER RATINGSMatt Ryan – 7The former Brighton and Arsenal man completed his best performance yet in a Lens shirt. His saves, especially in the first half against Gouiri, and tipping Balerdi’s header onto the bar, where simply vital in keeping the waves of OM attack at bay at times. The second half was a little easier, with OM slacking off slightly. Yet in total the Australian made six saves and prevented 1.68 expected goals. A solid showing at the right time.

Ruben Aguilar – 5

Deiver Machado – 6

Malang Sarr – 5

Jonathan Gradit – 5

Abdulai Juma Bah – 4

Andy Diouf – 5

Neil El Aynaoui – 6The Moroccan popped up with the decisive goal when it mattered, and what a finish it was. A strike which rocketed into the roof of the net after El Aynaoui controlled well in the box with his first touch.

Nampalys Mendy – 4

Floriant Sotoca – 5

Wesley Saïd – 6GFFN | George Boxall – Reporting from Stade Vélodrome, Marseille.