Champions League, Group A match
Date: Wednesday, 3 October
Kick-off: 1945 BST
Venue: Anfield
Listen: BBC Radio 5live Updates: BBC Sport website and mobile; Score on BBCi (1930 BST)
Liverpool have Ryan Babel and Yossi Benayoun competing to replace the suspended Jermaine Pennant. Pennant was sent off against Porto in Liverpool's opening Champions League game and sits out Marseille's visit. Benayoun may get the nod after goals against Reading and Wigan, while Steven Gerrard is fit after a car accident. Marseille could have former Liverpool duo Djibril Cisse and Bolo Zenden in their side, but playmaker Samir Nasri is out with a viral infection. Date: Wednesday, 3 October
Kick-off: 1945 BST
Venue: Anfield
Listen: BBC Radio 5live Updates: BBC Sport website and mobile; Score on BBCi (1930 BST)
Liverpool (from): Reina, Arbeloa, Finnan, Carragher, Hyypia, Riise, Aurelio, Babel, Benayoun, Gerrard, Mascherano, Sissoko, Lucas, Torres, Voronin, Kuyt, Crouch, Hobbs, Itandje. Liverpool manager Rafael Benitez:
"Steven Gerrard is fine, OK, he has trained normally and I have talked with him. "He has been to see the lad in hospital, but I do not see any problem for Steven playing after the accident. Everybody understands the situation and what happened. "He has talked with the family and the boy. He was going very slow and it was an unfortunate accident. He was shaken up, but I have talked to him and he has been training normally. "I do not expect it to be any sort of problem for him when he plays." Marseille's former Liverpool striker Djibril Cisse:
"I have so many good memories of my time here. The Champions League final, the Super Cup and FA Cup finals, I feel bonded to this club. "The win in Istanbul is the highlight. It was such a crazy game and a crazy night. No player could ever forget that and I imagine the fans will always remember it. "That is what bonds us, the players and the fans who were all there that night. It is something that will stay with me forever." BIG MATCH STATS Head-to-heads These sides have met twice before. Both encounters took place in the fourth round of the 2003-04 Uefa Cup. Olympique Marseille prevailed 3-2 on aggregate and made the final that season. No players in Olympique's current squad played in either of those matches; Liverpool's Jamie Carragher, John Arne Riise, Steven Gerrard and Sami Hyypia were all involved. European history Liverpool are making their sixth CL group stage appearance having made their debut in the competition in 2001. They are trying to emulate AC Milan by becoming the second club to win the trophy, having been runners-up in the previous season - 14 years after the Italian club achieved it. Olympique Marseille have compiled a record of 10 wins, six draws and 10 defeats in 26 CL matches. Their only major European trophy was the Champions League in its inaugural season of 1992-93. Current European form Olympique Marseille started their CL campaign by defeating Besiktas 2-0 at home, but the French have not won a CL match on the road since 22 September 1999, when they triumphed at Croatia Zagreb. Liverpool have won six of their last seven European home matches. They opened challenge in the competition proper for the 2007-08 CL with a 1-1 draw at FC Porto. Player and disciplinary info Jermaine Pennant (Liverpool) is suspended following his red card against FC Porto. Djibril Cisse, who was a Liverpool player between 2004-06, is the leading career CL goal scorer in the Marseilles squad, with four goals. Other miscellaneous facts This will be Rafael Benitez' 50th career CL match as a manager. The Liverpool boss becomes the 13th coach to reach this milestone. Liverpool won 0-1, away to Wigan in the Premier League on Saturday; Olympique Marseille did not play in the French league at the weekend. In the summer, Marseille sold star player Franck Ribery to German giants Bayern Munich for 25 million euros. It was the biggest transfer last summer in terms of French departures, and German acquisitions. Definitions of terms used:- Champions League (CL) - only group phase matches and beyond of this competition which began in 1992-93.
Champions Cup/Champions League - all matches played since it began in 1955-56 including qualification matches.
European matches - all matches played in the major European tournaments (Fairs Cup, Uefa Cup, Cup Winners' Cup, Champions Cup, Champions League).
Uefa Super Cups, Intertoto Cups and the old Intercontinental Cup competition are excluded. Big Match Stats source: Infostrada Sports
"Steven Gerrard is fine, OK, he has trained normally and I have talked with him. "He has been to see the lad in hospital, but I do not see any problem for Steven playing after the accident. Everybody understands the situation and what happened. "He has talked with the family and the boy. He was going very slow and it was an unfortunate accident. He was shaken up, but I have talked to him and he has been training normally. "I do not expect it to be any sort of problem for him when he plays."
"I have so many good memories of my time here. The Champions League final, the Super Cup and FA Cup finals, I feel bonded to this club. "The win in Istanbul is the highlight. It was such a crazy game and a crazy night. No player could ever forget that and I imagine the fans will always remember it. "That is what bonds us, the players and the fans who were all there that night. It is something that will stay with me forever." BIG MATCH STATS Head-to-heads These sides have met twice before. Both encounters took place in the fourth round of the 2003-04 Uefa Cup. Olympique Marseille prevailed 3-2 on aggregate and made the final that season. No players in Olympique's current squad played in either of those matches; Liverpool's Jamie Carragher, John Arne Riise, Steven Gerrard and Sami Hyypia were all involved. European history Liverpool are making their sixth CL group stage appearance having made their debut in the competition in 2001. They are trying to emulate AC Milan by becoming the second club to win the trophy, having been runners-up in the previous season - 14 years after the Italian club achieved it. Olympique Marseille have compiled a record of 10 wins, six draws and 10 defeats in 26 CL matches. Their only major European trophy was the Champions League in its inaugural season of 1992-93. Current European form Olympique Marseille started their CL campaign by defeating Besiktas 2-0 at home, but the French have not won a CL match on the road since 22 September 1999, when they triumphed at Croatia Zagreb. Liverpool have won six of their last seven European home matches. They opened challenge in the competition proper for the 2007-08 CL with a 1-1 draw at FC Porto. Player and disciplinary info Jermaine Pennant (Liverpool) is suspended following his red card against FC Porto. Djibril Cisse, who was a Liverpool player between 2004-06, is the leading career CL goal scorer in the Marseilles squad, with four goals. Other miscellaneous facts This will be Rafael Benitez' 50th career CL match as a manager. The Liverpool boss becomes the 13th coach to reach this milestone. Liverpool won 0-1, away to Wigan in the Premier League on Saturday; Olympique Marseille did not play in the French league at the weekend. In the summer, Marseille sold star player Franck Ribery to German giants Bayern Munich for 25 million euros. It was the biggest transfer last summer in terms of French departures, and German acquisitions. Definitions of terms used:- Champions League (CL) - only group phase matches and beyond of this competition which began in 1992-93.
Champions Cup/Champions League - all matches played since it began in 1955-56 including qualification matches.
European matches - all matches played in the major European tournaments (Fairs Cup, Uefa Cup, Cup Winners' Cup, Champions Cup, Champions League).
Uefa Super Cups, Intertoto Cups and the old Intercontinental Cup competition are excluded. Big Match Stats source: Infostrada Sports
Source: BBC Sport
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