Previews: Marseille return home after Madonna inquiry
PARIS - Brief news from Ligue 1 ahead of this weekend's matches:
Olympique Marseille return to their Velodrome stadium when they host leaders Girondins Bordeaux for their second home game of the season on Sunday.
The stadium was unavailable for their first home match due to an inquiry into the collapse of a stage constructed for a planned Madonna concert last month.
Marseille fans plan to pay tribute to the club's major shareholder Robert Louis-Dreyfus, who died last month, with a minute's applause before the game.
The Provence side will be without Argentina midfielder Lucho Gonzalez, who has yet to play a game this season because of a fractured collarbone.
Champions Girondins Bordeaux expect to be at full strength when they try to extend their record winning streak to 15 games in the league.
Argentina striker Gonzalo Bergessio should make his St Etienne debut when his new side host fellow strugglers Grenoble on Saturday.
Bergessio will make up St Etienne's new pair of forwards with Ivory Coast's Boubacar Sanogo after the club let France's Bafetimbi Gomis move to neighbours Olympique Lyon.
Get FourFourTwo Newsletter
The best features, fun and footballing quizzes, straight to your inbox every week.
Authorities say they will watch the game closely as dozens of fans invaded the pitch after St Etienne lost their third game of the season at home last week.
Ludovic Giuly left a training session with a sore calf on Thursday but he should be able to play when Paris St Germain host Lille on Sunday.
Guillaume Hoarau, Paris's top scorer last season, has recovered from a groin injury but is not sure to make the starting line-up.
Coach Antoine Kombouare could field Peguy Luyindula alongside new signing Mevlut Erding up front.
Olympique Lyon will be without defenders John Mensah and Fabio Grosso when they host Nancy on Saturday.
Media reports say Mensah is about to join the English Premier League while Grosso is interested in a move to Juventus.
Promoted Montpellier will have to make do without Bosnian defender Emir Spahic, who has been diagnosed with the H1N1 flu virus, when they play at Nice on Saturday.
‘Arteta, Alonso, Emery, me… none of us were physical players – we needed the understanding of the game. That probably helped us move into management’: Premier League boss reveals reasons for natural career progression
‘England have the players to win the World Cup – it’ll be tough for Thomas Tuchel to do a bad job, with the squad he has at his disposal’ Former Three Lions winger backs new boss after gentle qualifying draw