17 Years Later…

By Dominic Vieira

Marseille beat Bordeaux in the League Cup Final 3-1. Goals from Diawara, Valbuena and Chalmé (own goal) ensured that Marseille won their first trophy since 1993

The 44th Coupe de la Ligue final saw two of France’s biggest teams take on each other, Marseille vs Bordeuax at the Stade de France, Paris. Marseille had never won this trophy before, whereas the cup holders, Bordeaux, have lifted it three times over the past eight years.

After a goalless first half which Marseille dominated, the second half promised goals. Both teams had fair chances to score, but Marseille broke the deadlock in the 62nd minute with Souleymane opening the scoring. 6 minutes later, midfielder Mathieu Valbuena made it 2-0 for l'OM. An own goal by Mathieu Chalmé in the 78th minute ensured that Marseille would be taking the trophy home.

A late goal by Ludovic Sané pulled one back for Bordeaux, but it was only a consolation goal. The team knew that they didn’t have the capability to score 2 goals with less than 10 minutes remaining, especially because Laurent Blanc had subbed off Gourcouff and Chamakh. However, in stoppage time they still managed to scare Marseille when Plasil hit the post of Mandanda’s goal.

Marseille played brilliantly and were always seeking to score, they completely deserved to win the trophy. This cup win demonstrates the hard work Didier Deschamps and the team have been doing. The celebrations went on the streets of Marseille and they were carried out through Sunday too with team parading through the streets. The last time they won a trophy was in 1993! However, Marseille will soon have turn their complete attention to the league table as they are chasing 1st place Bordeaux by 3 points.

Bordeaux were worthy losers and the team will have to take this defeat by their chin. However, Laurent Blanc seems more concerned about the Champions League quarter-final against Lyon on the 30th of March. Hopefully, the team will manage to bounce back from this defeat and not let it affect them.

Here are the match highlights:

What is your view of the final? Will Marseille manage to surpass Bordeaux as Ligue 1 Champions?