Roberto De Zerbi’s side welcomed the six-time European Champions to Stade Velodrome after plundering 14 goals in their previous two games, and would have fancied their chances of more success here after dispatching Newcastle United in November.
Arne Slot’s team were eager to avoid becoming their second English scalp this season, and came within inches of breaking the deadlock when Alexis Mac Allister drilled a right-footed shot wide of the post.
Hugo Ekitike thought he had drawn first blood moments later, but his effort was chalked off for offside after narrowly mistiming his run from Dominik Szoboszlai’s cross.
Marseille were struggling to find their rhythm going forward, but Mason Greenwood managed to float an enticing free-kick into the box and Amine Gouiri caught the ball very sweetly to force Alisson into a fine two-handed save.
However, it was Liverpool who found the breakthrough when Szoboszlai’s free-kick went under Marseille’s jumping wall and beat an outstretched Geronimo Rulli at his near post. That was the Hungarian’s sixth goal contribution in his last five UCL appearances (G4, A2), and came at the end of a cagey opening 45 minutes.
De Zerbi would have demanded much more intensity from his players after the break, and Greenwood took matters into his own hands with two quickfire efforts. The first was parried away by Alisson, while the second was deflected narrowly wide.
After a sluggish opening 45 minutes, the game opened up very nicely in the second period. Ekitike was agonisingly close to doubling Liverpool’s lead when his shot cannoned off the woodwork from Szoboszlai’s through ball, before Hamed Traore blazed his strike over the bar at the end of a swift counter-attack.
The Reds were eager to put this game to bed heading into the final 30 minutes of this contest, as Florian Wirtz was denied by Rulli, and Ekitike’s ferocious strike from a tight angle flew over the bar.
A second would come in the 72nd minute courtesy of some fine work by Jeremie Frimpong, who outmuscled Igor Paixao and his ball across the face of goal was inadvertently turned home by Facundo Medina.
Cody Gakpo then added extra gloss to the scoreline with a clinical finish after being played in by Ryan Gravenberch, capping off a fine night’s work for Slot’s men on the Côte d'Azur, and automatic qualification into the round of 16 remains firmly in their sights.
Meanwhile, the Phocaeans will hope to nail down a play-off place on matchday eight when they face Club Brugge after succumbing to a fourth consecutive UCL H2H defeat.
Flashscore Man of the Match: Dominik Szoboszlai (Liverpool)
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