Marseille mission suits Niang

By Matthew Spiro

Olympique de Marseille will be hoping for more inspiration from their new striker Mamadou Niang when they take on RC Deportivo La Coruña in the UEFA Intertoto Cup final first leg at the Riazor tonight.

Mixed start
It has been a mixed start to the season for Marseille and their new coach Jean Fernandez. While the club has been in fine form in the Intertoto Cup, disposing of BSC Young Boys and S.S. Lazio on their way to the final, they have made a poor start in Ligue 1, losing their first two matches against FC Girondins de Bordeaux and RC Lens.

'A big move'
It is perhaps no coincidence that Marseille's two defeats came when Niang, a €7m summer signing from RC Strasbourg, was sidelined through suspension. The Senegalese international has certainly impressed in the European matches, scoring in both rounds and giving the Marseille attack a focal point it was arguably lacking last season. "I'm pleased with the start I've made," Niang told uefa.com. "Joining OM from Strasbourg was a big move for me, so it's nice to score some goals and take the pressure off a little."

Dream goal
Niang's superb strike against Lazio in the semi-final was his first at the Stade Vélodrome. With the tie evenly poised at 1-1, the 25-year-old latched on to Wilson Oruma's through-ball and unleashed a ferocious left-footed shot into the bottom corner. "It was a special moment for me," Niang said. "Not only because it set up the victory but also because I had realised my boyhood dream. When I was little I used to watch the great Marseille teams on TV and since then I've always wanted to score for Marseille at the Vélodrome."

Fernandez lifeline
It was an ambition that Niang looked unlikely to fulfil three years ago when he was a bit-part player with ES Troyes AC. After scoring just three goals in 20 appearances during the first half of the 2002/03 season, the out-of-sorts striker was handed a lifeline by Fernandez who signed him for FC Metz. Niang succeeded in relaunching his career in Lorraine and admits he owes a lot to the current Marseille boss.

'Short of confidence'
"Jean Fernandez helped rescue my career," he said. "I was really short of confidence when I was at Troyes, but he seemed to believe in me and that gave me a lift. He got me thinking positively and helped me to be more relaxed in front of goal. I'm delighted to be playing for him once more."

'The pressure is greater'
Six months at Metz preceded two fruitful seasons at Strasbourg. Last term Niang scored 12 times in the league and was also on target in the League Cup final success against SM Caen. However, he knows that scoring regularly in Alsace is no guarantee of success on the Mediterranean coast. "A lot of players struggle to impose themselves at Marseille," Niang acknowledged. "The pressure is obviously greater at Marseille than at Strasbourg, for example, and I've already noticed the way the media have got on top of us after we lost our first two league matches."

'It's not ideal'
Niang, however, is not too concerned by the club's slow start. "It's not ideal but we're not going to start panicking either," he explained. "The club made a lot of changes in the summer and it's bound to take time for the new players to settle. But we've already shown in Europe that this team has potential. Now we need to keep working hard and I'm sure our luck will change."