After opening their first season under Roberto De Zerbi with four wins and a draw in the league, Marseille lost at Strasbourg last week and dropped points to winless Angers in a glum Velodrome Stadium where two stands were closed by order of the league.

"I accepted the compliments after the good results, now we have to accept the criticism," said De Zerbi.

Marseille even briefly played with a man advantage after Lilian Raolisoa was sent off in the 26th minute. But Neal Maupay picked up two yellow cards in the next three minutes and Marseille were down to ten men.

Former UEFA president and France captain Michel Platini recently suggested that to make modern football more attractive, games should be 10-a-side. Friday's hour-long experiment provided little evidence to this.

Marseille's Jonathan Rowe broke through after 51 minutes. But in three minutes Farid El Melali converted a free kick.