OM and Strasbourg were set for the 2026-2027 Ligue 1 season opener on Friday night, with kickoff scheduled for 20h45 and the official starting lineups announced before the match. For OM, it was Bruno Genesio’s first official selection as coach, giving the opening fixture an immediate added layer of interest.
The OM lineup came with a few notable absences already affecting the shape of the team. Leonardo Balerdi was ruled out with a calf injury, while Alexi Koum and Quinten Timber were suspended before kickoff. That left Genesio to adjust his first competitive XI of the season, with the match offering an early look at how he wants OM to line up in a 4-2-3-1.
One of the more notable names in the OM setup was Igor Paixão, who arrived in the opener after a pre-season in which he scored four goals. That kind of form helped create some early momentum for his first official league appearance, even in a match where the selection picture was shaped by absences.
What the lineups tell us
The official selections also made the opening-night tone clear for both sides. Strasbourg arrived with their own starting XI named before kickoff, setting up a first look at how the two teams would begin the new Ligue 1 campaign. With the season only just starting, the lineups were the clearest sign yet of how each coach wanted to approach the opener.
For OM, the big takeaway was straightforward: Bruno Genesio trusted a 4-2-3-1 in his first official match, while the unavailable players already forced him to make early decisions. For Strasbourg, the confirmed lineup meant the visitors could settle into the contest with their own preferred structure from the first whistle.
