Paris Saint-Germain can strike a major blow in the Ligue 1 title race by continuing their impressive recent record against Marseille when the bitter rivals meet at the Stade Velodrome on Sunday.
The defending champions have spent most of the season playing catch-up at the top but finally reached the summit after beating Lorient 3-1 in their last outing a fortnight ago, leading Lyon by one point and Marseille in third by two points.
Laurent Blanc's side have dominated the fixture known as 'Le Classique' in recent years, with their 2-0 win at the Parc des Princes in November their sixth in a row against OM.
Indeed, they have won seven and drawn one of the last eight match-ups since going down 3-0 at the Velodrome in November 2011, when Andre Ayew was among Marseille's scorers.
"Before the current period, Paris were struggling because we were better off financially," recalled Ayew, the son of former Marseille and Ghana star Abedi Pele, in an interview with sports daily L'Equipe this week.
"Since being taken over by the Qataris, Paris have taken on another dimension. We need to be realistic. They have brought in players to build a great team and they proved that against Chelsea," he added with a nod to PSG's Champions League last-16 win over the London side last month.
"Playing in a Classique is unique. My dad always used to say to me that these were matches you couldn't lose."
Marseille have climbed right back into contention after taking seven points from a possible nine in March having previously gone four games without a win.
And Marcelo Bielsa's side will look to make the most of having home advantage, with a record crowd of around 64,000 expected at the renovated Velodrome, where the atmosphere can be among the most raucous in Europe.
"This match is always a bit special," Paris coach Laurent Blanc, who played in the fixture for OM for two seasons in the late 1990s, told PSG TV.
"A sort of supremacy is at stake but at the end of the day there is only three points up for grabs. It is an exciting game to take part in for various reasons, especially because of the satisfaction we can give to the supporters."
Marseille coach Bielsa has a decision to make in attack, where Andre-Pierre Gignac has been the first choice this season but Michy Batshuayi is the man in form.
Batshuayi came off the bench to score twice in the 4-0 win against Lens last time out and the Belgian, who made his full international debut last weekend, has scored six goals in his last five games.
- Dangerous outsiders -
With their main rivals facing each other, Lyon will hope to take advantage when they go to Guingamp on Saturday.
Hubert Fournier's side, who lost 2-1 at home to Nice in their last outing, are without the injury-prone Yoann Gourcuff as well as France right-back Christophe Jallet, who suffered a dislocated shoulder on international duty.
Meanwhile, Monaco remain dangerous outsiders in the title race as they sit six points behind the leaders with a game in hand.
The principality club entertain Saint-Etienne, just one point behind them in fifth, at the Stade Louis II on Friday.
"We are aiming to continue climbing the table. Every match is decisive now," said Monaco coach Leonardo Jardim, who will be without veteran defender Ricardo Carvalho due to a twisted knee.
Elsewhere, Bordeaux, in sixth, host Lens on Sunday, while bottom side Metz entertain fellow strugglers Toulouse and Lorient host Brittany rivals Rennes on Saturday.
Fixtures (kick-offs 1800GMT unless stated)
Friday
Monaco v Saint-Etienne (1830GMT)
Saturday
Guingamp v Lyon (1500GMT), Lille v Reims, Lorient v Rennes, Metz v Toulouse, Montpellier v SC Bastia, Nice v Evian
Sunday
Bordeaux v Lens (1200GMT), Nantes v Caen (1500GMT), Marseille v Paris Saint-Germain (1900GMT)
Source: AFP
