Deprived of Seedy Jatta and Nelson Weiper, SK Sturm Graz are counting on Ivorian forward Oumar Diakité, scorer of 6 goals in 5 league matches, to take on Olympique de Marseille on Thursday in the Europa League.
SK Sturm Graz host Olympique de Marseille this Thursday, 22 October 2026, at 16:45 GMT (18:45 in Paris), at the UPC-Arena, on matchday 3 of the Europa League, according to AfricaFoot. The Austrian club have picked up one point from their first two outings, a 1-1 draw with Rennes followed by a 0-3 defeat to Bournemouth.
OM, for their part, arrive on the back of two consecutive defeats in the competition and desperately need to get their first points on the board. In this context, it is on the Austrian side that one Ivorian name stands out.
Diakité, Sturm’s attacking reference
Oumar Diakité has established himself as Sturm Graz’s attacking reference. On loan from Reims, the Ivorian forward has 6 goals in 5 league matches since his arrival, according to AfricaFoot. He comes into the game off a stunning hat-trick against Grazer AK in a 6-1 win last weekend.
Those statistics take on particular significance given that the Austrian club are without their forwards Seedy Jatta and Nelson Weiper, who have 5 goals between them this season. Emran Soglo, Otar Kiteishvili, Gizo Mamageishvili and Filip Rozga are also unavailable. Diakité will therefore be expected to lead the line.
OM’s African armada
At the other end, OM are expected to field a strong African contingent, according to probable and unofficial line-ups. Nayef Aguerd, the Moroccan centre-back, would start in defence. In midfield, Nouhoum Kamissoko (Malian midfielder), Tochukwu Nnadi (Nigerian defensive midfielder), Amine Harit (Moroccan attacking midfielder) and Himad Abdelli (Algerian midfielder) would form a continent-heavy midfield. Up front, Algerian forward Amine Gouiri would be handed the striking role.
Only defender Derek Cornelius and midfielder Pierre-Émile Højbjerg would be missing for the trip to Austria. It remains to be seen whether this armada can get the machine running after two consecutive Europa League defeats.
The memory of 1999
The two clubs have met before, in the Champions League in 1999. Back then, OM won 2-0 at the Vélodrome before losing 3-2 in the return leg in Austria. A precedent the statisticians will dig up, though it offers no indication of how this new meeting will turn out.