Announce the Despite a fantastic start, Marseille’s Ligue 1 title prospects are “not serious

Marseille coach Roberto De Zerbi says his side targeting the Ligue 1 title would “not be serious”, despite a fast start that has kept them level on points with Paris Saint-Germain and Monaco at the top of the table.

OM snatched a dramatic 3-2 victory against rivals Lyon last weekend despite playing the majority of the match with 10 men, thanks to Jonathan Rowe’s last-gasp strike. That win put them behind leaders PSG on goal difference and above Monaco. They face another tricky assignment this Sunday at a Strasbourg team who have shown plenty of promise under new boss Liam Rosenior.

Marseille fans are already dreaming of challenging for a first Ligue 1 title since 2010, but De Zerbi tried to keep their expectations in check. “I am not talking about a title, that would not be serious,” the Italian, who joined in the summer after leaving Brighton, said last weekend. “We were born yesterday. PSG and Monaco are ahead, they have been playing together for years.”

Strasbourg, with the lowest average age in their starting XI of any team in the top 10 leagues in the UEFA co-efficient rankings, have led in every match so far this season but dropped nine points from winning positions already. There could be plenty of goals at the Stade de la Meinau, with Strasbourg and Marseille boasting two of the best three attacks this term.

Marseille are unbeaten in their last 19 matches against Strasbourg dating back to 2005, although the last four meetings have been drawn. Reigning champions PSG bid to get back to winning ways on Friday night when they host Rennes, after losing their 100-percent record with a 1-1 draw at Reims. Coach Luis Enrique insisted that his players would not be distracted by the daunting Champions League trip to Arsenal next Tuesday.

“At no time do I think and will not think about the match against Arsenal, we have to win against Rennes, that’s the most important thing,” said the Spaniard. Monaco host struggling Montpellier on Saturday, hoping to build on their best start to a league season since their title-winning 2016/17 campaign. Elsewhere, Lens, the only other unbeaten team, host Nice, who will be full of confidence after their 8-0 thrashing of Saint-Etienne.

Brest, who notched two victories last week including a 2-1 success against Sturm Graz on their Champions League debut, eye their first points on the road this season at Auxerre on Friday.

Player to watch: Andrey Santos

On-loan Chelsea midfielder Santos has enjoyed a fine start to the season with Strasbourg, scoring three goals in four appearances, including one in their thrilling 3-3 draw at Lille last weekend.

The 20-year-old Brazilian also had a spell at Strasbourg last season after struggling to find first-team action on loan at Nottingham Forest.

Key stats

2: PSG have lost only two Ligue 1 matches since the start of last season. Only Bayer Leverkusen and Real Madrid have lost fewer games in the top five European leagues in that time.

5: Strasbourg have led in every Ligue 1 match this season, but have only one victory.

13: Monaco have 13 points from their first five games, their highest total since they last won the Ligue 1 title in 2016/17.

15: Marseille have scored 15 goals already this season, their most at this stage of a campaign since 1954/55.

Fixtures (all times GMT)

Friday

Auxerre v Brest (17:00), Paris Saint-Germain v Rennes (19:00)

Saturday

Lens v Nice (15:00), Le Havre v Lille (17:00), Monaco v Montpellier (19:00)

Sunday

Toulouse v Lyon (13:00), Angers v Reims, Nantes v Saint-Etienne (both 15:00), Strasbourg v Marseille (18:45)