Nice V Angers - Kicks off at 12;00 GMT - Live on BT Sport 3
Nice were poor last weekend in their 2-0 defeat at Lyon. Les Nicois look like they can beat anyone in the league at times but struggle at others. Marseille and Rennes are the same which is why PSG are running away with the league without performing that well. Les Nicois only managed a single shot throughout the game. Thats a huge disappointment given the attacking talent Nice have; Amine Gouiri (15 goals and 7 assists in all competitions), Andy Delort (8 goals 1 assist), Justin Kuivert (4 goals 3 assists) and Kephren Thuram (3 goals, 2 assists) it's hard to understand why so few chances were created. Manager Christophe Galtier put the defeat down to his team not being able to cope with Lyon’s pressing. Yet he was reluctant to blame his players. In his post match interview the ex Marseille defender stared “I have no reproach for my players. They put in enormous effort but we were beaten in every department.“
The concern for Galtier is how his team cope the next time they face a high intensive press. They‘ve lost their last two league games either side of an emphatic Cup win over Marseille. That shows their issues with consistency and how hard it’s getting to predict Ligue 1 results. Les Aiglons are only missing two players through injury; defenders Jordan Amavi and Youcef Atal. This is a game that Nice must win to avoid slipping away from their Champions League hunt.
Angers have now lost three matches in a row following their 1-0 home defeat to Strasbourg last week. Worryingly they have just one win in the last seven games and have lost five in that time. Les Scoistes are not in immediate danger of sinking in to the relegation fight. They sit 13th in the table a healthy eight points from the bottom three. However they have to get back to picking up points and scoring goals. Both the Manager Gerald Baticle and his senior players advised of the need to not panic yet try and be more spontaneous in their attacks. Following the defeat by Strasbourg, forward Stephane Bahoken told local newspaper Ouest-France "I'm not necessarily worried. It's four years I'm here, we know very well that we often have a soft blow in January and February. This year verifies that. But it will get going again." Angelo Fulgini explained "We must not panic... It's football and in football you can catch up each weekend. We will therefore catch up next weekend." There is clearly experience and confidence in the squad which will serve Angers well. They just need to start picking up points. Angers have no injuries or suspensions so must try to get something from this game.
French Footy prediction: Nice 1 - Angers 1
Rennes V Troyes - Kicks off at 14:00 GMT- Live on BT Sport 3
Rennes lost narrowly 1-0 at PSG last weekend but must be sick that they conceded in stoppage time. The Bretons remain the only team to beat Paris in the league this season. Les Rennais created plenty of chances but only had one on target. Winger Benjamin Bourigeaud’s mishit volley had the goalkeeper scrambling but not beaten. Rennes were in the game right up to the end but we’re just undone by the brilliance of Kylian Mbappe. No shame there although a draw would have probably been a fair result. The loss sees the race for Europe tighten further as Strasbourg overtook Rennes and Monaco and Lyon moved to within goal difference of them. As the European places are so highly contested Rennes must ho for the win here. Bruno Genesio has some players missing here; Jeremy Doku remains injured with a hamstring problem.
Troyes were thrashed 5-1 at Brest last weekend. L’ESTAC have lost plenty of games this season (13 out of 24) but are rarely beaten convincingly. They were completely blown away here though. Apart from sapping confidence the loss dragged Troyes in to the bottom three. With Clermont and Saint Etienne winning and Lorient picking up a point the team from Champagne are now in big trouble. New Manager Bruno Irles is under pressure after just five games. A run which has seen one victory, three defeats and one draw.
Irles bemoaned his team's "deficiencies" after the game in both defence and attack. The former Monaco player has has the backing of his Chairman this week but really needs a result here. The only positive from last weekend was that veteran defender Adil Rami git his third goal of the season. Defensively however he wasn't great. All of the players must improve if they are to get anything here. Troyes have no new injury concerns for this game.
French Footy prediction: Rennes 2 - Troyes 1
Saint Étienne V Strasbourg - Kicks off at 14:00 GM
Three wins on the bounce for Les Verts! As in the previous weeks win over Montpellier, Saint Étienne came from behind to secure a valuable victory. Another three points took Pascal Dupraz's team to 18th in the table. They are now on 21 points as are Troyes and Lorient who sit just above them on goal difference. Beating Clermont 2-1 also narrows the gap between the two clubs to just three points. After going behind on 39 minutes Saint Étienne rallied in the second half. The equaliser came from Captain Mahdi Camara. The 23 year old finished nicely from close range after a clever through ball from on loan winger Sadio Thioub.
Camara (pictured above) usually plays in centre midfield but has played in defence when needed this season due to injuries. For this game Dupraz pushed him up in to a number 10 role behind strikers Kazri and Nordin. It worked. Then in the 82nd minute a Romain Hamouma corner was headed in by defender Timothée Kolodziejczak. Dupraz has given this famous old club a huge lift since taking over from Claude Puel in December. The 59 year old seems to encourage his players whilst keeping a level head. He told RMC Sport after the game "The players performed admirably especially at the end when we weren't in control of the second half. We've got to stay careful with 14 matches left to play." The loan signings that Dupraz has brought in, goalkeeper Paul Bernardoni and Sadio Thiuob have been effective. I was surprised by the loaning of Bernardoni as existing keeper Etienne Green is a promising young player. Clearly the new coach favours experience over promise and it seems to be working. Whatever happens Les Stephanois now have a chance of staying up which seemed impossible a few weeks ago.
Strasbourg have won their last two league games after winning 1-0 at Angers last weekend. Les Coureurs are on a great run that has seen just two losses in thirteen league games with eight wins and two draws. Given they brought in a new manager, Julien Stéphan, at last season’s end, and have had little investment in players, this looked like being a season of transition for Strasbourg. However that recent recent run has propelled them to 4th in the table and right in the hunt for European qualification. The goal that beat Angers came from striker Kevin Gameiro.
The 34 year old in his second spell with the club hit a sumptuous volley on 11 minutes following a corner. That was enough to secure the points. It’s fascinating to see how far Strasbourg can take this form and if they can qualify for the Europa League or Conference which would be a huge achievement. They have only the long term injury if defender Maxime Le Marchand to worry about so go in to this game in good shape and confidence.
French Footy prediction: Saint Étienne 1 - Strasbourg 1
Lorient V Montpellier - Kicks off at 14:00 GMT
Lorient worked hard to gain a valuable point last time out at Monaco. The 0-0 draw keeps them in the bottom three but moved them on to the same number of points as Troyes. Only a single point and or goal difference separates the bottom four so the relegation scrap is very tight. Les Merlus had been in free fall but 4 points from the last two games gives them hope. They have also kept two clean sheets in the past two games with second choice goalkeeper Matthieu Dreyer coming in to the team.
The 32 year old Dreyer has taken Paul Nardi's place to good effect so will surely start here again. Manager Christophe Pelissier is still missing midfielder’s Stephane Diarra and Fabien Lemoine through injury and now defender Moritz Jenz to COVID. Let’s see if Lorient can pick up another valuable point or more here.
Montpellier were right in the mix for a European place then suddenly lost form at the turn of the year. During 2022 they have won just one of their five league games, losing the other four and being knocked out of the Coupe De France. Losing captain Teji Savanier through suspension during that time didn’t help. However the attacking midfielder was back for last weekends home game to Lille but couldn‘t stop a 1-0 defeat. The 30 year old is having a great season (5 goals 6 assists) despite being suspended for a number of games.
With him, Mollet and Mavididi pulling the strings in an attacking midfield three La Paillade do have the potential for goals. Particularly on the counter attack. Unfortunately the goals have dried up of late and they are one of a number of Ligue 1 teams that struggle for consistency. Montpellier had plenty of chances in the Lille game and had most of the possession but couldn’t make it count. They are not helped by Mavididi still being out with a knee injury.
French Footy prediction: Lorient 1 -Montpellier 1
Reims V Brest - Kicks off at 14:00 GMT
Reims fell back down to Earth last week. After thrashing Bordeaux at home 5-0 a fortnight ago, les Rouges et Blancs lost 1-0 at Nantes last Sunday. The game was lost in the first 20 minutes with veteran centre back Yunis Abdelhamid getting sent off and Nantes scoring shortly after. Abdelhamid will now be banned for two games for his mistimed challenge.
Reims made a game of it though and were a little unlucky to lose. Manager Oscar Garcia was optimistic in the post match interview and praised his players character and will to go forward even with ten men. As well as Abdelhamid Reims have several players injured, most notably defender Thomas Foket and midfielders Moussa Doumbia and Andrew Gravillon and forward El Bilal Toure. Reims are six points away from the relegation scrap I thought they’d be involved in. A point here would help them keep a distance from the teams below them.
After a poor run of one win and four losses Brest sprang in to life last week smashing Troyes 5-1. The home victory was exactly what the Bretons needed to stop the slump. The opening goal came in blustery conditions with two new signings combining. Youcef Belaïli got his first assist for his new club, in his first start, by sending a ball in for Martín Satriano to score his first goal in Ligue 1. Belaïli was signed as a free agent on the 31st January to replace playmaker Romain Faivre who left for Lyon. Uruguayan striker Satriano was brought in on loan from Inter Milan and got his second goal in three Ligue 1 appearances 20 minutes after his first.
Attacking midfielder Franck Honorat also scored two to take his tally to 8 for the season with 4 assists. Steve Mounie wrapped things up on 82 minutes with his 6th goal of the campaign. A fantastic team performance. With no new injuries or suspensions Les Pirates should go in to this match with confidence.
French Footy prediction: Reims 2 - Brest 2
Bordeaux V Monaco - Kicks off at 16:05 GMT - Live on BT Sport 3
Bordeaux are having a horrendous season and are now rock bottom of Ligue 1. Their loss at Lens last week was their 12th if the season. They are capable of scoring goals as highlighted by Albert Elis and Hwang Ui-Jo yet again last week but concede far too many. 61 goals conceded after 24 league games is an awful record. That’s at least 16 more than anyone else in Ligue 1 so far. With Saint Étienne and Lorient starting to pick up points Bordeaux must get something here. Les Bordelais have two main sources of hope in staying up; The first is the form and goals from Elis (9 goals in 16 games) and Hwang (10 in 19). The second is that the new manager will be able to tun things around. After a week of rumours following the sacking of Manager Vladimir Petković, ex Reims Coach David Guion was finally announced as Bordeaux boss on Thursday.
The 54 year old made Reims difficult to beat which is exactly why he’s been brought in. If he can stop Les Girondins conceding whilst keeping his front two scoring he has a chance of success.
Monaco only drew at home to Lorient last week and failed to score. The 0-0 draw was a little surprising given the form of Wissam Ben Yedder who’d six goals in the previous four league games. Les Monegasques had plenty of possession and chances but couldn’t make them count. Monaco’s upturn in form over the past few months sees them in 6th place sandwiched between Rennes and Lyon who are also on 37 points. The race for Europe is so tight that if any team in the top ten wins they are in contention. For that reason Monaco have to go for the win here. With no new injury concerns they should be confident of getting a result. There should be goals in this game given the goal scorers on each team. French Footy Prediction: Bordeaux 2 - Monaco 2
Marseille V Clermont Foot - Kicks off at 19:45 GMT - Live on BT Sport 3
Marseille got a narrow win at Metz last week despite not performing that well. The victory was important as it kept them in second place And got L’OM back on track after the huge disappointment and embarrassment of the recent cup exit at Nice. Coach Jorge Sampaoli once again left striker Arkadiusz Milik on the bench preferring the pace and movement of Cedric Bakambu and Cheikh Bamba Dieng up front. It was Bakambu who opened the scoring, turning in the ball from close range following a corner. Marseille laboured through parts of the game and let Metz back in to it. It was left up to Milik to win the game after coming on as a 76th minute substitute. Receiving the ball with his back to goal in the box he chested it down then scored with a well executed overhead kick. It was a fantastic goal.
The Ukrainian forward then scored two more goals in Thursday’s 3-1 win Europa Conference win over Qarabag FK. To me Milik is the best goal scorer Marseille have had since Didier Drogba. He has 14 goals in 23 appearances this season often starting on the bench. He doesn’t have the mobility or pace of other strikers, that is clear. However when surrounded by quick players like Cengiz Ünder and De La Fuente he finds space well and is a great finisher. The win against Qarabag was another example of Les Marseillais winning without playing well. The performances must improve if they are going to cement the second place in Ligue 1 and qualify for the Champions League. Marseille have no injuries or suspensions to worry about.
After two surprise back to back wins over Nice and Rennes, Clermont were brought down to earth last week by losing to Saint Étienne. The 2-1 home defeat was a disappointment as they had taken the lead and Les Verts are one of few teams below them in the league. Clermont are 15th but just three points above the bottom three. That was why the two recent wins against top five teams were crucial to battling relegation. Les Lanciers threatened early in the game against Saint Étienne through top scorer Mohamed Bayo (9 goals 2 assists). The goal however came through Jason Berthomier‘s 39th minute corner. Centre half Cédric Hountondji headed in his first goal of the season. Clermont didn’t play badly against Saint Étienne but couldn’t take their chances and came up against an in form goalkeeper. With teams below them starting to pick up points they could do with a point at least here. Clermont Coach and former Marseille player Pascal Gastien will be hoping his team can make the most of his old teams indifferent home form. Clermont could be missing defenders Jean-Claude Billong and Josue Albert due to an ankle injury and COVID respectively. French Footy prediction: Marseille 2 - Clermont 0
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