Monaco v PSG

Both Monaco and PSG come into this Ligue 1 game without their problems to seek, but it is the home side who have the bigger issues to face. Eliminated from the Europa League on Thursday by Braga, their gamble to replace Niko Kovac with Philippe Clement during the winter break is one that is not paying off.

Monaco presently look rudderless, dominating games in an entirely sterile manner. They lost 1-0 at Strasbourg last weekend and have won only one of their last eight games in all competitions. They are winless in three at home, including fixtures against modest clubs Lorient and Reims.

Conversely, PSG’s issues are well documented. They were booed even during a 3-0 win over Bordeaux last weekend, but though they have struggled on their travels, they are probably thankful to be away from the bearpit that is Parc des Princes this weekend.

There are doubts over the fitness of Lionel Messi, though these will not impact the team as greatly as might have been imagined when the multiple Ballon d’Or winner arrived in August. It is, after all, Kylian Mbappe that they are almost wholly reliant on offensively.

PSG have also shown an ability to raise their level on the road at times and notably dismantled defending champions Lille 5-1 in February. While it is unlikely that they will repeat such an emphatic success in the principality, their odds look too good to ignore, especially as they are playing an abject opponent.

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Angers v Brest

Having spent the majority of the season well away from the relegation zone, Angers are being sucked into the thick of the battle as the campaign reaches its climax. Gerald Baticle’s side have lost their last seven successive matches and have shown little evidence of being able to turn this slump around.

Offensively, key players Angelo Fulgini and Mohamed-Ali Cho have lost their form. Fulgini may not even be able to make this match because of injury. Furthermore, a problem for right wing-back Jimmy Cabot, who has been another key player this season, deprives them of his talents for the weekend.

With just one win and one draw in their last 12 matches, that they are warm favourites to win this match is illogical.

Brest, meanwhile, are undefeated in their last couple of away games, including an excellent win against Lens a fortnight ago. Indeed, their only away defeats all season have come against the leading five teams in the league.  

Their squad is also in a strong state, with starting centre-backs Christophe Herrelle and Brendan Chardonnet returning after missing out against Marseille last weekend.

Stade Raymond-Kopa is not a venue that Angers are strangers at winning at, either. They have won two of their last three visits to the venue, while they lead twice in last season’s 3-2 defeat before conceding two late goals. Meanwhile, the last two matches between these clubs have ended in draws.

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Bordeaux v Montpellier

Two thoroughly out-of-form teams meet on Sunday, with Bordeaux bottom of the league and Montpellier’s aspirations of European football having been dashed by a dreadful sequence of results.

Clearly, this is an encounter of greater importance to the home side, who will be five points from the playoff place at kick-off. Defeat would leave them in a very tricky spot indeed.

Although they have changed coach lately, Bordeaux have seen little improvement in their fortunes. Bordeaux have won just one of their last 11 fixtures while their last home outing was a 2-0 defeat against fellow strugglers Troyes in what may yet prove to be a watershed moment of their season. Last weekend, they were swept away 3-0 by PSG.

Montpellier are faring little better. They have lost six of their last nine games, and last weekend could only pick up a point against a Nice side that was reduced to 10 men in the first half of the game.The guests will again be without Mamadou Sakho, who has been their defensive leader, but they will welcome back leading attacker Stephy Mavididi, who should give their attacking line a valuable kick. 

Both these teams have typically been involved in high-scoring matches this season, and while the appointment of David Guion has seen Bordeaux become a little more pragmatic, the tendency is for this match to see plenty of action. After all, the teams drew 3-3 in Montpellier when they met in September.

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Lorient v Strasbourg

Lorient have breathed fresh hope into their season thanks to a fine run of recent results that has seen them pick up three wins in their past six games. On Sunday, they go chasing back-to-back league victories for the first time this season, having won 2-0 against Clermont away from home last weekend.

Typically strong at home but weak on the road, the tables have turned for Lorient in recent weeks. They have lost their last couple at home against mid-table Montpellier and Lyon but have picked up their first away victories since October 2020.

Strasbourg, meanwhile, have lost only two matches since mid-October. This run started with a thumping 4-0 win over Lorient. A little of the edge has come off the form of Julien Stephan’s side in recent weeks. Although they won at home against Monaco last weekend, they are not playing as fluently as they once were and recent away matches have seen them draw against Reims and Saint-Etienne.

Racing, though, are typically good for a goal. Indeed, only Nice and Marseille, two of the league’s best defensive sides, have shut them out over a period of nearly six months, while they have netted in 24 of their 28 league games.

Similarly, Lorient are improving offensively. Ibrahima Kone, who has acted as a super sub in recent weeks, is set for his first start in this game, with the Bretons now looking more potent offensively.

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Rennes v Metz

Rennes have been spectacular in recent weeks, lifting themselves into the Champions League equation thanks to a terrific run of form that has seen them win five of their last six Ligue 1 matches. Leicester got a taste of that in the Conference League on Thursday, with the Premier League side riding their luck to secure a passage through, despite losing 2-1 on the night.

Fatigue, though, has to become an issue for Rennes after this gruelling period of football. They are not aided, either, by injuries to first-choice goalkeeper Alfred Gomis or winger Jeremy Doku, who is once more sidelined.

Metz, meanwhile, have been the great pragmatists of French football in recent weeks. Head coach Frederic Antonetti’s side have hunkered down and focused on their defensive capabilities as they try to fight relegation. Four of their last six matches have finished 0-0. Indeed, in the post-Christmas period, only one of their nine fixtures has produced more than two goals.

The visitors will not change their defensive approach as they travel to Roazhon Park for a fixture that they are widely expected to lose. Indeed, the sense that the three points will be staying at home is only amplified by the fact that Rennes won the previous meeting between these sides 3-0 in October.

Metz’s task, though, will be to keep the scoreline respectable. They have shown in recent weeks that they are capable of doing just that. It will suit them to make this match as little of a spectacle as possible.

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Reims v Lyon

Reims have coped admirably well with an injury crisis in recent weeks. Despite being severely depleted since the beginning of February, they have picked up three wins in their last six Ligue 1 matches and have drawn two of the others.

This mettle will be put to the test against a Lyon side that has performed well below expectations domestically this season but finds itself in the quarter-finals of the Europa League following a two-legged victory over Porto.

Lyon’s issue has been consistency. This has been underscored by their away performances in Ligue 1 this season, with just four wins coming from 13 away matches to date. Indeed, they have picked up just one road success in their last six, although that came a fortnight ago in Lorient, where they played quite beautifully.

Reims, though, have a surprisingly strong record against OL. Not only did they won 2-1 away from home in December, they have lost only one of their last seven against Lyon. Indeed, OL have lost a higher percentage of their historic meetings against Reims than versus any other top-flight side.

Home head coach Oscar Garcia has shown a capacity to set up his team to make things surprisingly difficult for opponents in recent weeks, and combined with the unpredictability of the visiting side, the hosts should not be readily underestimated prior to this encounter, despite their ongoing injury problems.

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Marseille v Nice

The weekend’s Ligue 1 action concludes with a derby match between Marseille and Nice.

The strength of passion between these clubs was underlined earlier this season, when the first meeting between these sides was abandoned after Dimitri Payet was struck with a bottle thrown at him by a Nice fan at the Allianz Riviera. Nice were 1-0 up and heading to victory, and after they were deducted a point, they could only draw a replayed match 1-1 behind closed doors. That could be vital come May.

Marseille come into the game off the back of three straight victories, but their Ligue 1 form has been indifferent. Although they won 4-1 in Brest last weekend, it was a flattering scoreline, while they had won only once in their previous six matches.

Nice, meanwhile, have been far steadier. They are undefeated in five overall but some of the shine that saw them perform so well away from home earlier in the season has gone. They are winless in their last three on their travels, including a defeat in Lyon and draws against Strasbourg and Montpellier.

Both these teams have shown pragmatism this season, but Nice more consistently. They have not conceded in their last four and have scored only two goals during that period. OM are more mercurial but three of their last four in the league have produced under three goals, and that seems the logical way to bet on this match, especially following the dour stalemate played out between these teams in October.

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