Feyenoord vs Marseille Europa Conference League semi-final first-leg preview: Where to watch, kick-off time, predicted line-ups

Feyenoord and Marseille meet in their UEFA Europa Conference League semi-final first leg on Thursday 28 April.

Where to watch Feyenoord vs Marseille on TV

Fans can find their local UEFA Europa Conference League broadcast partner(s) here.

What do you need to know?

The sides met in the 1999/2000 UEFA Champions League second group stage, when Feyenoord claimed a 3-0 home win before the second match ended in a stalemate.

Marseille will travel to De Kuip for the first leg thanks to the goalkeeping heroics of Steve Mandanda away to PAOK in the previous round, plus a third goal of the tie from Dimitri Payet as OM secured their return to the last four.

Cyriel Dessers' two goals inspired Feyenoord's victory in an action-packed last-eight tussle with Slavia Praha, the Dutch hopefuls clinching their first European semi-final since lifting the UEFA Cup 20 years ago.

Feyenoord: Marciano; Geertruida, Trauner, Senesi, Malacia; Til, Aursnes, Orkun Kökçü; Nelson, Dessers, Sinisterra
Suspended: none
Misses next match if booked: none

Marseille: Mandanda; Rongier, Saliba, Ćaleta-Car, Perea; Guendouzi, Kamara, Gerson; Bakambu, Payet, Dieng
Suspended: none
Misses next match if booked: none

Form guide

Feyenoord
Form (all competitions, most recent first): WWWDWL
Where they stand: 3rd in Dutch Eredivisie

Marseille
Form (all competitions, most recent first): WWLWWW
Where they stand: 2nd in French Ligue 1

Expert predictions

Derek Brookman, Feyenoord reporter
Feyenoord recorded a 2-1 victory over Utrecht on Sunday to stay third in the Eredivisie. Luis Sinisterra scored the winner, and he – together with Cyriel Dessers, with eight goals and two assists in the UEFA Europa Conference League already this season – can cause the Marseille defence plenty of problems. That said, the high-flying French visitors are probably still slight favourites.

Ian Holyman, Marseille reporter
Marseille picked up an 11th away win of the Ligue 1 season at the weekend, a club record tally, so the trip to Rotterdam will hold few fears for them. With Dimitri Payet playing some of the best football of his career, Arkadiusz Milik in tip-top goalscoring form and Jorge Sampaoli's first-choice starting XI looking strong back to front with useful strength in depth on the bench, the French outfit will arrive in the Netherlands in bullish mood.

What the coaches say

Arne Slot, Feyenoord coach: "They are Champions League-level opponents; opponents who will punish you if you give them time and space. It is a great credit to coach Jorge Sampaoli that he has changed their style, and that he gets his side to play in so many different systems. It is ridiculous how many formations Marseille can deploy. To get a result, we have to play our best game of the season."

Jorge Sampaoli, Marseille coach: "We started analysing Feyenoord as soon as the draw was over. This team plays well. They're flexible. Quick on the break. They have many players with an offensive approach and I expect a high tempo. This will force us to give our best."

Where is the 2022 Europa Conference League final?

AFP via Getty Images

Tirana's Arena Kombëtare will stage the final on Wednesday 25 May.

The winners gain a place in the 2022/23 UEFA League group stage, if they have not qualified via their domestic competition.