New Delhi: Erik Gerets’ Olympique de Marseille side were ousted from the UEFA Cup, despite creating enough chances on the night to win an entire competition, let alone one tie.
A goal on the half hour mark from Fernandinho may have been one of Shakhtar Donetsk's only two efforts on Steve Mandanda’s goal all night, however, it proved to be a match-killing moment as the Ukrainians sent Olympique de Marseille out of the UEFA Cup.
And yet hope lived on with OM for much of the evening as the French side, who would draw level via Hatem Ben Arfa just before the interval, created a plethora of chances but were slack in the face of Andriy Pyatov’s goal. Indeed, Luiz Adriano won the tie for Shakhtar in the final minute with a well-taken breakaway goal.
Marseille started positively, Mamadou Niang’s early driving run causing panic in the home defence while a similar slalom moments later from Ben Arfa drew a foul that allowed Mathieu Valbuena to deliver a free kick that just eluded Niang and skimmed through to grateful goalkeeper Pyatov.
Buzzing from the energy emanating from the home stands, OM flooded forward in the opening minutes and certainly had their visitors feeling most unwelcome. Ben Arfa’s early touches were frequently sublime, teasing the white-clad defends to set up Valbuena to skid a shot comfortably wide only a few seconds after Benoit Cheyrou’s positive burst through the centre had yielded a wasted shooting chance.
Although there were early moments of hope, vast quantities of energy and buckets of desire, Shakhtar’s tactic of defending their box in numbers had prevented a real opening coming the way of les Phoceens. Just as they had done so effectively in Donetsk, Shakhtar attempted to counterattack quickly, however, their quartet of Brazilian attackers were shackled impressively by the home rearguard.
The direct running of Ben Arfa and Valbuena caused the Ukrainians all kinds of early problems. Although sheer weight of numbers was frequently enough to shut the diminutive flyers out, a sprinkling of free kicks around the edge of the area brought opportunities for the hosts. Taye Taiwo scored a bullet free kick at the weekend against Grenoble but was unable to repeat such heroics from a similar position, tugging his effort wide.
Taiwo was involved again in the next attacking wave, powerfully sprinting forward to deliver a delicate back-post chip that was turned on by Niang and would surely have been converted by Bakary Kone had the Ivorian not been rocking on his heels.
Jadson was a key factor last week, despite barely having a kick of the ball. The little Brazilian had done nothing of note in the opening half hour but was the architect of the first half’s key moment as a neat pass into the channel released Fernandinho down the left for the first time. The Brazilian got to the byline and seemed certain to tug the ball back. Charles Kabore, who had enjoyed an excellent game to this point, despite playing out of position at right-back, challenged the Brazilian but succeeded only on clattering the ball onto the foot of the attacker, where from it somehow zipped between Steve Mandanda and his near post from the most acute of angles.
Luckless Marseille nearly found a lifeline only a couple of minutes later as Valbuena’s free kick was flighted onto the head of Taiwo, whose lobbed effort dropped wide. More trickery from Ben Arfa, who had popped up on the right, then set up a chance for Kone, whose difficult first-time shot flew well wide.
Only half chances were being created by the still dominant hosts. Kabore, wandering forward from right-back once again, latched onto Niang’s back-pass but blazed over as he cut in on his left side. This strike was Marseille’ 13th shot of the evening – the statistics at this point read just one in favour of Shakhtar, but the Ukrainians’ sole swing was the differentiating factor.
OM’s 14th effort, perhaps technically their 15th, drew them level. Kabore swept up an over-hit Ben Arfa cross, dinking the ball back into the six yard box. The former Lyon player had alertly continued his run, meeting the Burkinabe’s cross with a strong header that Pyatov reacted well to save. The Ukrainian stopper could not control his rebound, allowing Ben Afra to lash into the roof of the net. The Stade Velodrome to erupted and no doubt this moment forced head coach Erik Gerets to re-script his team-talk somewhat.
Shakhtar’s first half tackling could be kindly described as robust. The effects of their physical approach took their toll on the OM squad at half-time as Taiwo had to be replaced after a crude challenge in first half stoppage time left the hard-running Nigerian unable to continue.
Although the left-back was no longer on the park, Marseille continued to enjoy success in carving openings just after the pause. A beautifully constructed passing move down the right concluded with Kabore reaching the far extremity of the pitch and crossing for Kone, totally alone ten yards out, to head disappointingly wide.
But a worse miss would quickly eradicate the memory of the Ivorian’s profligacy. Again Ben Arfa conceived the move with a strong run, allowing Kabore time and space to cross. Although Niang was just too short to get his head to the ball, Benoit Cheyrou’s run to the back post was supremely well timed. His finish, from eight yards out, was weak as he pushed the ball wide, despite his unmarked status.
The midfielder then went equally as close with a far more difficult chance as he snapped an effort marginally over the top corner of the net, instinctively thumping at goal as a loose ball broke out to his weaker right foot 25-yards out.
A whole catalogue of similar chances would drop OM’s way but a combination of desperate blocking from Shakhtar and off-target shooting from the mustard shirted home side allowed Pyatov to rest easy.
Needing a miracle, it took OM until the final quarter of the match before the bluster started to leave their play. Ben Arfa, though, continued to be an effervescent attacking presence and yet another direct stab at the Ukrainians’ rearguard brought a shooting chance. While the youngster’s all-round game was arguably better than any other actor on the field, his shooting was indiscernible from that of his team-mates – his effort flayed wildly over the bar.
A clever header from Boudewijn Zenden, Taiwo’s inert replacement, released Niang down the left channel. The Senegalese striker squeezed a low cross into the box that should surely have been rocketed into the net by Mamadou Samassa, however, his effort summed up Marseille’s night as he missed the ball entirely.
Three minutes later, Samassa had the ball in the net after he had profited from some brilliance from Ben Arfa on the left. The bulldozing striker was denied a goal by the referee, who deemed him to have fouled Pyatov as he leapt.
This proved Marseille’s last meaningful resistance as the hopelessness of the situation finally caught up with them. Shakhtar started to find greater holes in the OM defence. Jadson went for personal glory when well placed in front of goal when a simple squad pass to Luiz Adriano would have brought a winner. Deep into stoppage time, the Brazilian did get his goal, running away from the home defence to hammer through the legs of the exposed Mandanda.
Not that it mattered – Shakhtar had already done enough to claim a place in the semi-finals against fierce rivals Dynamo Kyiv.
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