Preview: Besiktas vs Marseille - prediction, team news, lineups

Besiktas begin their Europa League league-phase campaign at Tupras Stadyumu on Thursday evening when they play host to Marseille, with both sides looking for a positive start after making managerial changes during the summer.

The Black Eagles have made a good start under Vincenzo Italiano, while Le Phoceens arrive in Istanbul looking for answers after losing three successive Ligue 1 matches since the beginning of Bruno Genesio's reign.

Match preview

Besiktas endured a difficult European campaign last season, with their hopes of reaching the Europa League league phase ending at the first qualifying hurdle against Shakhtar Donetsk, before they eventually missed out on the Conference League main stage following defeat to Lausanne-Sport.

That loss also brought an abrupt end to Ole Gunnar Solskjaer's tenure, with Sergen Yalcin returning for a second spell at the club before leaving at the end of 2025-26 after helping the side to a fourth-placed finish and a place in the Europa League second qualifying round.

Italiano has now been given the job of leading Besiktas, and his side have won nine of their 11 competitive matches this season (L2), including aggregate victories over Midtjylland, Hradec Kralove and Kauno Zalgiris to secure their place in the Europa League league phase.

The Black Eagles have also made a strong start domestically, sitting second in the Super Lig table after taking 12 points from their opening five league matches (L1), including a 2-1 victory away to Fenerbahce before following that up with a 3-0 home success over Erzurumspor at the weekend.

That result extended Besiktas's perfect record at their Istanbul ground to six straight victories, with five clean sheets during that run, and the hosts will be confident heading into Thursday as they aim for an excellent start while chasing a first Europa League knockout berth since 2016-17.

Marseille ended last season in fifth place in Ligue 1 to secure a return to the Europa League, having spent most of the campaign competing in the Champions League before their domestic form dipped towards the end following considerable upheaval in the dugout.

Roberto De Zerbi departed in February before Jacques Abardonado briefly took caretaker charge, while Habib Beye guided the side through the remainder of the campaign before being replaced by Genesio in the summer.

Genesio began his tenure with a 4-0 victory over Strasbourg, but that emphatic success has been followed by three consecutive defeats against Monaco, Paris FC and Rennes, with last weekend's 1-0 loss at the latter leaving Marseille 13th in the early-season Ligue 1 table, one point above the relegation playoff spot.

Les Phoceens will hope their return to European football can provide some relief from their poor domestic run, although history does not offer much encouragement, as both sides won their home games during their only two previous meetings in the 2007-08 Champions League group stage.

Marseille can at least draw on a strong European record, having reached three UEFA Cup/Europa League finals and the semi-finals as recently as 2023-24, while their most recent continental campaign saw them compete in the Champions League league phase, where they narrowly missed out on the knockout playoffs.

Besiktas Europa League form:

Besiktas form (all competitions):

Marseille form (all competitions):

Team News

Besiktas are expected to remain without Ridvan Yilmaz, who is sidelined with a thigh injury, but otherwise have a strong squad available for the opening league-phase fixture.

Dusan Vlahovic should return to the starting XI after missing the weekend victory over Erzurumspor through suspension, having scored four goals across his previous two appearances for the Black Eagles.

Former Arsenal man Leandro Trossard opened his account for the club last time out, netting the second goal in that victory over Erzurumspor, and is expected to retain his spot on the left wing of attack.

Marseille are expected to be without Geoffrey Kondogbia and Tochukwu Nnadi, leaving Genesio with fewer options in central midfield for the trip to Istanbul.

Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg should therefore have an important role to play in helping the visitors withstand Besiktas's pressure, while Amine Gouiri and Igor Paixao are likely to carry much of the attacking burden for the visitors.

Besiktas possible starting lineup:

Nubel; Murillo, Agbadou, Topcu, Ouattara; Ozcan; Cerny, Olaitan, Kokcu, Trossard; Vlahovic

Marseille possible starting lineup:

De Lange; Egan-Riley, Aguerd, Emerson; Weah, Hojbjerg, Abdelli, Gomes; Harit, Gouiri, Paixao

We say: Besiktas 2-0 Marseille

Besiktas may have endured a miserable European campaign last season, but their impressive start under Italiano gives them a good chance to begin the league phase with a victory.

Marseille possess the greater European pedigree, but three successive defeats and a difficult start under Genesio make them vulnerable, particularly against a Besiktas side that have won every competitive home match this season, so a home victory looks feasible.

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