Injury Concerns Haunt Marseille Ahead of Olympiacos Clash

According to a report by Sport24.gr, Olympiacos' opponents for their upcoming UEFA Europa League clash, Marseille, have been hit with an injury crisis. 

One of the most notable absentees from the match will be Derek Cornelius, who featured for the Canadian national team during the 2026 World Cup. The central defender from Ajax, Canada, was ruled out by the French club following an official statement till the winter break. The details of his injury were not revealed, and a rare case was identified, ascertaining the fact that it will take a substantial amount of time for him to recover. 

Cornelius has played in Greek stadiums before, particularly during his loan tenure with Panetolikos from Vancouver Whitecaps. He featured 42 times for the Greek outfit in the 2021-22 season, scoring twice in all competitions. 

The Canadian international started in Marseille's Europa League opener against Besiktas, which ended in a 4-1 defeat for the club. Cornelius was one of the lowest-rated players on that day, as he was subbed off later in the game. 

Apart from the absence of Cornelius, Marseille have another injury problem in veteran midfielder Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg. The Dane is out with a minor knock that will keep him out of this fixture, but he will be fit to play in the French club's Ligue 1 games. 

While Marseille go in this game with their share of knocks, Olympiacos will be without their first-choice striker Ayoub El Kaabi, who is out for the season. Armando 'Hormiga' Gonzalez was rested by head coach Imanol Alguacil in the Derby of the Eternal Enemies against Panathinaikos in the weekend following his return from international duty with Mexico. Marius started the match upfront as the sole striker, but Gonzalez is expected to feature in the line-up against Marseille, especially after scoring his first European goal against Jagiellonia Bialystok. 

Olympiacos' 1-0 victory over Panathinaikos cut the league leaders lead at the top of the table to just a point. Panathinaikos are followed by AEK Athens (14 points) and Olympiacos currently takes the third spot with 13 points after overtaking PAOK. 

Winning against Marseille will provide an enormous boost to the Olympiacos players, who endured a slow start to the new campaign. They are back on track with crucial victories and three points from this mid-week fixture will certainly relieve some pressure off them in the European fight for a piece of silverware. 

We will keep this space updated with more information.