Marseille coach Didier Deschamps has praised his side’s gritty performance in coming from behind to defeat Rennes 2-1 away from home on Sunday.
Marseille went behind after 14 minutes through a long-range strike from Tongo Hamed Doumbia, after Lucho Gonzalez had given possession away, but an own-goal from Onyekachi Apam just before half-time levelled proceedings.
Just when it looked like the points would have to be shared, a 77th-minute shot from Benoit Cheyrou beat Abdoulaye Diallo in the Rennes goal to hand Marseille all three points, much to Deschamps’ delight.
“We could have scored more goals and we had a lot of chances but it’s an excellent result for us against a team which beat us at the Stade Velodrome,” Deschamps said.
“The first half showed the quality of Rennes and what a difficult league this is.”
Rennes coach Frederic Antonetti claimed his side deserved a point from the match and bemoaned a poor first half.
“Tonight, with a more experienced team, with the same energy and commitment, I think we would have got a draw,” he said.
“I think the draw would have been fairer. Each team had its good moments but I have some regrets after our first half performance.”
The win moved Marseille into fifth place in Ligue 1, nine points behind leaders Paris Saint-Germain, while Rennes are in sixth place, two points behind Marseille.
