Uefa Cup Round of 32, second leg/Marseille - 2 Bolton - 1: Sam Allardyce summoned all his strength to make his presence felt here though it was not enough to salvage Bolton's European dream.
Having been unable to travel with the team due to illness, the Bolton manager hoped his appearance hours before kick-off might provide the impetus for their passage into the last 16. But a cruel own goal midway through the second half ended their ambitions.
A very different outcome had looked possible when Stelios Giannakopoulos took advantage of a Fabien Barthez mistake early in the first half to give Bolton the lead, though a header from Franck Ribery seconds before the interval swung the game back in Marseille's favour. The momentum that followed finally yielded reward when Tal Ben Haim put through his own net.
Giannakopoulos exploited an error by Barthez to give Bolton the lead in the 25th minute. Jay-Jay Okocha, lining up for a long throw-in, surprised Marseille by dropping the ball short to Ricardo Gardner. The Nigerian delivered a deep cross to the back post that Barthez failed to gather and Giannakopoulos prodded into an empty net.
Barthez was beaten again later in the half when Abdoulaye Faye raced on to Kevin Nolan's pass, though a linesman's flag denied the Senegalese what would have been a goal. Bolton switched off seconds before the break as Samir Nasri crossed toward Ribery who headed inside Jussi Jaaskelainen's near post.
With 22 minutes remaining the second goal arrived. Habib Faye drove a low ball into the six-yard box. With Niang Mamadou poised to pounce Tal Ben Haim diverted the ball into his own net.
Guardian Service
MARSEILLE: Barthez, Taiwo, Ferreira (Deruda 66), Dehu, Meite, Beye, Oruma, Cana (Civelli 90), Nasri, Ribery (Cantareil 80), Niang. Subs Not Used: Carrasso, Andre Luis, Gimenez, Begeorgi. Booked: Beye, Cana. Goals: Ribery 45, Ben Haim 68 og.
BOLTON: Jaaskelainen, N'Gotty, Gardner, O'Brien, Ben Haim, Nolan, Speed (Vaz Te 84), Giannakopoulos, Okocha, Faye (Pedersen 73), Davies, Pedersen (Borgetti 87). Subs Not Used: Walker, Hunt, Jaidi, Nakata. Booked: Faye, Nolan. Goals: Giannakopoulos 25.
Referee: Massimo Busacca (Switzerland),
