Olympique Marseille drew 1-1 at home to Atalanta in the first leg of their Europa League semifinal on Thursday.
Gianluca Scamacca gave the visitors the lead after 11 minutes when Teun Koopmeiners found him unmarked in the box to fire low against the post, his 16th goal in all competitions this season.
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“It’s a smart result, we knew the atmosphere would be difficult tonight,” Scamacca told Sky Italia. “I’m just trying to do my thing for my team. My teammates put me in scoring position. “
Chancel Mbemba equalised for Marseille nine minutes later with a fine long-range shot that hit the post and into the net from a corner.
“We had a tactical plan, we knew we had to chase them, put pressure on them, make it difficult for them. I think we deserved to have done a bit more,” Marseille midfielder Amine Harit told Canal Plus. “Still, I think this night we played a smart game. “
Both missed opportunities to score more goals in the second half.
“To be honest, I’m hoping for a few more goals,” Atalanta coach Gian Piero Gasperini said.
“We had to fight tonight, but it’s a smart result, because Olympique have lost once here all year against PSG and they have done their best in this stadium. “
Marseille will travel to Bergamo for the second leg next Thursday. The winners will face either AS Roma or Bayer Leverkusen in the final on May 22 in Dublin.
“If Marseille triumph in the semi-finals, it means they are also smart away from home,” added Gasperini. “It’s true that their effects weren’t the same as at home, but they’re still a smart team and we want a smart performance.
“We have a chance, 1-1 is a smart result and we have to win. Whether it’s 90 minutes, after 120 minutes or penalties, we have to win in the final. “