Thanks largely to two defeats from their last three league outings, Marseille found themselves in the strange position of essentially having nothing to play for with two Ligue 1 rounds remaining.
While second place was still a mathematical possibility prior to tonight, Marseille started with minimal intensity and would have found themselves behind inside the opening half-hour but for the heroics of Pau Lopez to deny Mathias Pereira Lage.
As news sifted through that Lens had raced into a healthy lead in their game against Ajaccio, that further complicated matters for Marseille, who knew they were now officially finishing third irrespective of what they did here.
Hoping to inject some semblance of pride into his ranks, Olympians boss Igor Tudor deployed Nuno Tavares in an attempt to change the flow of the game during a half-time interval that would have seen some home truths uttered in the changing room.
His decision almost proved a masterstroke inside five minutes after the restart, but as Tavares found space in the box, a desperate Kenny Lala block denied him an instant impact.
Despair then turned to agony just moments later too, when Hugo Magnetti’s wicked strike from the area took a wicked deflection off Chancel Mbemba and nestled in the corner with Lopez rooted to the spot.
With professional pride still at stake, Marseille rightly weren’t keen to sign off their home campaign with defeat and handed themselves a lifeline with 15 minutes to play when Mbemba redeemed himself by powering home an equaliser.
They failed to take any advantage of that gimme though, with Brest having the last laugh when Mahdi Camara ghosted in round the back from a corner to head home a winner from a matter of yards.
Marseille were consigned to third place regardless but Igor Tudor will still be glad to see the back of this season, with his ability to name just six of a possible nine substitutes underlining the difficulties his side have faced of late.
As for Brest, they should hold high hopes for next season if they can regain the form they’ve shown in the past weeks, with their form under Eric Roy amongst the best in the league at present.
Flashscore Man of the Match: Pierre Lees-Melou (Brest)
