Habib Beye claims Marseille have "no fear" of Lyon and he remains optimistic about their top-four hopes in Ligue 1 this season.

Beye was named as Roberto De Zerbi's successor earlier in February but lost his first game in charge 2-0 away to Brest.

Marseille are now winless in their last four Ligue 1 matches, though they still sit fourth, five points behind third-place Lyon.

Lille and Rennes are breathing down their neck as the race for the Champions League places gets tighter, but Beye is confident his side can stay in the fight.

"I'm very optimistic. We want to win this match to get back within two points of Lyon," Beye, who is back at the Orange Velodrome having played there between 2003 and 2007, said in his pre-match press conference.

"There are 11 matches left, 33 points; the season is very long. Any other result wouldn't change everything. This team knows what it can do.

"It's an exceptional match to play at the Velodrome. It's a real challenge for them too. There's no fear. There's joy. We have to show a winning attitude from the very first second."

A seven-match winning streak in Ligue 1 propelled them into a strong position, but they suffered a 3-1 loss to Strasbourg last time out.

Top scorer Pavel Sulc is set to be missing from Paulo Fonseca's squad for this game, along with Afonso Moreira, and with a hectic schedule coming up, the Portuguese head coach acknowledged the challenges of dealing with injuries.

"It's tough because these are four players who are difficult to replace," Fonseca said.

"We have to play with the players we have. We face many matches in similar situations, and we have to build the team with those who are available.

"[The defensive injuries are] concerning because we have few options. We look at what we can do with the players we have.

"These are players who carry the team on the field, who are present in the box, strong in defence, and capable in attack. This depth was lacking in the last match. It's difficult, but we can find a solution."

PLAYERS TO WATCH

Marseille – Amine Gouiri

Amine Gouiri has been involved in five goals in his last five Ligue 1 matches against Lyon (three goals, two assists).

Only against Angers (nine) and Metz (eight) has the Marseille striker been more decisive in the top-flight than against Lyon (seven).

Lyon – Corentin Tolisso

With the likely absence of Sulc, who scored in the reverse fixture (1-0 on 31 August), Corentin Tolisso is the only other current Lyon player to have previously scored against Marseille in Ligue 1.

The midfielder scored a goal in the last meeting between the two sides at the Velodrome in February 2025 (3-2 to Marseille).

MATCH PREDICTION: MARSEILLE WIN

Marseille have won each of their last three home games against Lyon in Ligue 1, as many as in their previous 14 (D6 L5).

In fact, Marseille could record four consecutive home wins against Les Gones for just the third time, after 1952-1956 and 1993-1997.

There have been 40 draws between the sides in Ligue 1 (Marseille have 32 wins and Lyon have 38 wins), with only Marseille-Bordeaux (41) seeing a greater number of draws in the history of the league. However, the last draw between these two teams in the competition was in the 2020-21 season.

While Marseille are backed to win this match by the Opta supercomputer, they are winless in their last four Ligue 1 matches (D2 L2) – their longest run without a victory since March-April 2024 (five). Lyon, meanwhile, have not lost back-to-back away matches this season.

OPTA WIN PROBABILITY

Marseille – 46.9%

Draw – 24.8%

Lyon – 28.3%