Bruno Genesio says Sunderland target Igor Paixao is not for sale, with the Marseille manager hoping to keep the Brazilian despite the club’s financial restrictions.
Paixao joined Marseille from PSV last year and is reportedly the subject of interest from Sunderland after an impressive first season in France. The forward contributed 18 goals and assists in Ligue 1 last term, scoring 12 times and creating six goals for his team-mates.
He also ranked second among Marseille players behind Mason Greenwood for both dribbles attempted and successful dribbles. Paixao tried 110 dribbles during the campaign and completed 35 of them.
However, he will not be available for Marseille’s Ligue 1 meeting with Monaco on Sunday because of a thigh problem. Genesio nevertheless made clear that the club do not intend to sell him.
“No, no, Igor is not being sold,” Genesio insisted.
A potential transfer would also be difficult to manage because Marseille may be unable to register a replacement. The club’s financial position means they could be required to sell several players before being permitted to bring in a new signing.
Marseille sporting director Gregory Lorenzi said: “Even if we sell a player, we will not be allowed to register a signing.
“In practice, several departures would be required before we could make a signing.
“I don’t know if people understand the situation. Letting Igor go is difficult because we may not have the possibility to replace him. It is not a very simple equation to solve.
“I think we need to be clear with everyone. The situation is not easy, but we will fight.”
Marseille began the 2026-27 Ligue 1 season in emphatic fashion, beating Strasbourg 4-0 last week. Monaco also claimed victory in their opening fixture, winning 1-0 away against Le Havre.
Players to watch
For Monaco, Lamine Camara was the standout performer during the opening round of matches. He attempted nine tackles and completed seven, both the highest totals recorded by any player across matchday one. He also won possession nine times in the middle third, another competition-leading figure.
Camara has been strongly linked with a move to Chelsea, where he has been mentioned as a possible replacement for Enzo Fernandez.
Marseille will look to Amine Gouiri for an attacking threat. Gouiri scored twice in the victory over Strasbourg and was also Marseille’s scorer when they lost 2-1 to Monaco in April.
He has scored nine top-flight goals during 2026 and could reach 10 goals in a calendar year for the fourth time. It would be the first occasion on which he has managed that in consecutive years, having previously reached the mark in 2021, 2023 and 2025.
Monaco favoured to continue home record
Monaco have won nine of their 13 home Ligue 1 matches against Marseille since returning to the top flight in 2013-14, losing the other four. Only Nantes, against whom they have recorded 11 home victories during that period, have been beaten more often at Stade Louis-II.
A victory would also give Monaco wins in their first two matches of a Ligue 1 season for the third time in the past four campaigns. They had achieved that feat only twice across their previous 22 top-flight seasons.
Marseille are seeking consecutive victories at the start of a Ligue 1 campaign for the first time since 2020-21. Monaco, though, have won each of their past three home openers in the competition after failing to win any of the five before that run, drawing four and losing one.
Marseille’s away form is less encouraging, with five defeats in their past seven Ligue 1 matches on the road. They have won the other two.
Genesio can point to a positive personal record, however. He has won each of his past six away matches as a manager in Ligue 1, all of them while in charge of Lille.
Opta’s win probabilities make Monaco the narrow favourites, giving them a 40.1% chance of victory. Marseille are rated at 34.8%, while the probability of a draw is 25.1%.
