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Olympique de Marseille and Atlético Madrid will do battle Wednesday night — and the winner will be crowned Europa League champions.
Should Diego Simeone’s men take care of business in Lyon, they would win this competition for the third time since 2010 — following triumphs over Fulham in Hamburg and Athletic Club de Bilbao in Bucharest. Atlético have been the favorites to win this year’s Europa League since they entered it in December, and a victory at Parc Olympique Lyonnais will secure the club’s first major trophy since 2014.
But whereas Atleti have already clinched a return to the Champions League thanks to domestic form, Marseille must win this match to ensure their presence in next season’s UCL. Rudi García’s side are fourth in Ligue 1 and need help on the final matchday to qualify through league position. OM, boasting an attack led by star midfielders Dimitri Payet and Florian Thauvin, are seeking their first Europa League triumph. If they win what amounts to a home match, they would nab their first major continental trophy since the 1993 European Cup.
Marseille and Atlético played each other in the 2008-09 Champions League group stage. The Spaniards defeated their French rivals 2-1 on matchday two and the teams played out a goalless draw on matchday six.
| CONVOCATORIA
— Atlético de Madrid (@Atleti) May 14, 2018
¡Estos son los 20 elegidos por @Simeone para viajar a la gran final de la @EuropaLeague! ⚪ #AúpaAtleti #UELFinal #OMAtleti pic.twitter.com/TS7m0rZHUU
Simeone’s team is fully fit and the boss has selected all available senior players, even though his touchline ban means Mono Burgos will be coaching them on Wednesday. There will be a few changes from the side that started Saturday’s 1-0 win at Getafe — José Giménez will likely slot in at center back, while Lucas Hernández and Šime Vrsaljko are set to take up the full back positions. In addition, Koke could feature once more in the enganche role as he did on Saturday, while Ángel Correa may re-enter the XI.
Possible XI
Oblak; Vrsaljko, Giménez, Godín, Lucas; Saúl, Gabi, Correa, Koke; Griezmann, Costa.
Predicted scoreline
Olympique de Marseille 1-2 Atlético Madrid (after extra time).
How to watch
Date: May 16, 2018
Location: Parc Olympique Lyonnais, Décines-Charpieu, Lyon, France
Kickoff time: 20:45 CEST, 19:45 GMT/BST, 2:45 p.m. EST, 11:45 a.m. PST
SB Nation opposition blog: N/A
Available TV/streaming: beIN Sports, Movistar+ (Spain), beIN Sports 1, M6 (France), BT Sport Live, BT Sport 2 (United Kingdom), ESPN Deportes, Fox Sports 1 (United States), Futbol 2, OLL.tv (Ukraine), PPTV Sport (China)
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