Luka Jovic (l.) wheels away in celebration after scoring an 89th-minute winner for Eintracht Frankfurt away to Olympique Marseille. - © © gettyimages / Boris HORVAT
Luka Jovic (l.) wheels away in celebration after scoring an 89th-minute winner for Eintracht Frankfurt away to Olympique Marseille. - © © gettyimages / Boris HORVAT

10-man Eintracht Frankfurt come from behind to beat Marseille

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Eintracht Frankfurt enjoyed a dream return to the European stage on Thursday, earning a 2-1 win away to last season's UEFA Europa League runners-up Olympique Marseille in Group H.

Olympique Marseille 1-2 Eintracht Frankfurt

Goals: 0-1 Ocampos (3'), 1-1 Torro (52'), 1-2 Jovic (89')

Such an outcome appeared unlikely early on as the Eagles got off to the worst possible start at an empty Stade Velodrome – the match being played behind closed doors as a punishment for the hosts following fan trouble last season - and conceded in the third minute when Lucas Ocampos beat Danny da Costa to a cross from the right to flick past Kevin Trapp. Adi Hütter's troops struggled to find their rhythm before the break and were fortunate to return to the changing room only a goal down.

Nicolai Müller's introduction at interval brought some much-needed drive to the visitors' attacks and his energy rubbed off on his team-mates, with summer signing Lucas Torro getting ahead of his marker to head in the equaliser from a corner in the 52nd minute. Matters took a turn for the worse moments later for Frankfurt when Jetro Willems was sent off for a second bookable offence, but the visitors still managed to pull off what could prove to be a vital victory when substitute Luka Jovic rifled in from close range in the last minute to hand them all three points.

Match stats

    Trapp is on loan at Eintracht from Paris Saint-Germain. He's now won all five of his appearances against Marseille.The Eagles' last European jaunt was in the 2013/14 Europa League, when they were knocked out by Porto in the last 32.Eintracht won three of their five away games in 2013/14 and have now lost just one of their last nine away matches in Europe.Frankfurt won their opening game of the 2013/14 campaign 1-0 away at another French side, Bordeaux, thanks to a Martin Lanig goal.Eintracht reached the final of the 1960 European Cup before winning their only major continental honour with the 1980 UEFA Cup - the year all four semi-finalists were Bundesliga clubs. Marseille lost last season's Europa League final 3-0 to Atletico Madrid.

Line-ups

Marseille: Pele – Sarr, Rami (Gustavo 7'), Caleta-Car, Kamara - Lopez, Strootman – Thauvin (Mitroglou,84'), Payet (c), Ocampos (Radonjic 72') – Germain
Unused substitutes: Amavi, Escales, Radonjic, Sakai, Sanson
Absentees: Mandanda (muscle), Rolando (Achilles tendon)
Coach: Rudi Garcia

Frankfurt: Trapp - da Costa, Abraham (c), N'Dicka, Willems – Torro, de Guzman (Falette 62'), Hasebe – Gacinovic (Müller 46'), Kostic – Haller (Jovic 75')
Unused substitutes: Zimmermann, Fernandes, Russ, Beyreuther
Absentees: Chandler (knee), Salcedo (ankle), Rönnow (knee), Tawatha, Geraldes (both back), Paciencia (meniscus tear), Fabian (not in squad)
Coach: Adi Hütter

As it happened

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