In the 22nd round of the French championship, Marseille will host Strasbourg. The Provençals have parted ways with head coach Roberto De Zerbi - a change that has been long in the making. Such a decision should give the team a shake-up ahead of a very important clash with another contender for European competition places. Of course, there are currently nine points between them. Marseille are fighting for a place in the Champions League. They sit fourth, three points behind Lyon, ten behind Lens, but five ahead of Rennes and six ahead of Lille. The position is fairly isolated, yet there is a critical risk of slipping out of the top three, something that cannot be allowed. Strasbourg are seventh, level on points with Toulouse, one more than Angers, and two more than Monaco and Lorient. Lille are three points clear above them, Rennes four. So the Alsatians are also in a precarious position that requires a win, which is bad news for both teams. In the previous round Marseille lost to PSG 0-5; earlier they drew with Paris (2-2). Between these results there was a 3-0 win over Rennes in the French Cup. A little earlier there was a humiliating defeat to Club Brugge 0-3 in the Champions League, which deprived the Provençals of a chance to continue in the tournament. Strasbourg in the previous round lost to Le Havre 1-2; before that they beat Monaco in the French Cup (3-1), but lost to PSG (1-2) in Ligue 1. In the first leg, Marseille beat Strasbourg away 2-1. The situation for both teams is such that they will have to play offensively and go for the win. This could turn into a high-scoring match.