Another weekend and another round of Ligue 1 fixtures, with this weekend’s offering having a lot to live up to after the last round of games provided many closely-fought spectacles. The talk of the weekend will be the highly-entertaining clash in French football most famous and historic match, and we will be surely satisfied to get just some of that drama for the coming games in the 2017/18 Ligue 1 season.
In this matchup, we firstly take a look at two sides at nearly opposite sides of the Ligue 1 spectrum, Lyon and Metz, with Lyon being by far the favorites for the win. In the second match, we will be more likely to see a closer affair with two sides that look evenly matched when considering recent forms and their positions on the Ligue 1table.
Lyon vs Metz
3-Way: 1: Lyon -370; X: +780 Draw; 2: Metz +1600
Spread -2: Lyon -118; Metz +114
Total +3.5: Over -115; Under +114
Lyon
Lyon maintained their unbeaten record at Troyes’ home stadium, having not lost there since 2007, in style with an emphatic 5:0 win. Lyon winger Bertrand Traoré, who came close earlier with a free-kick, started the rout in the 21st minute as the opposition goalkeeper fumbled the save and the shot trickled into the net. The half-time whistle came, and represented the calm before the storm as Lyon came out in the second half with greater impetus, taking four minutes for Memphis Depay to cut in and curl the ball into the far post, kick-starting an excellent hat-trick for the ex-Manchester United forward. The second came after teammate Mariano Diaz seemingly attempted to take on the entire Troyes defense, although he was eventually tackled and the ball fell to Depay who aimed the ball into the top corner. The third Depay goal came after he won a penalty as a defender saved his shot with his hand, and received a red card, with Depay going on to rub it in with a Panenka penalty to take home the match-ball and his ensure man-of-the-match status. Attacker Mariano Diaz eventually rounded off the win with the goal he deserved, fighting through the defense again and shooting through the keeper’s legs.
The weekend’s match was a great display of the potential of this Lyon attack, with each of the three attackers, Bertrand Traoré, Mariano Diaz and Memphis Depay, getting at least a goal. Two especially pleasing things for the manager will be that they managed so many goals with their main creator, Nabil Fekir, left on the bench. The other will be that Depay finally showed the French league what he is truly capable of.
Manager Bruno Genesio will be without central midfielder Pape Cheikh with a sprained ankle, but will otherwise have a full squad.
Metz
In a match between the 19th and 20th placed sides in Ligue 1, it was Metz who came away bitter as they lost 2:1 in front of their home crowd, although the points weren’t the only thing Metz lost. Dijon opened the scoring early on, heading in from a corner completely unmarked. Metz did, however, respond with a few headed chances of their own, with attacker Nolan Roux having the first and third of the three, with his first effort saved. The second came from Chris Philipps from range, but his was well-saved again, but Nolan Roux went third time lucky as this time he arrowed his header past the keeper. Unfortunately for Metz, despite the positive ending to the half, their game fell apart at the seams as Dijon scored their second, and Diagne Fallou was later sent off for lashing out at a Dijon player as he ran away with the ball.
It was a bad day at the office for Metz, but particularly for Phillipe Hinschberger who lost his result due to the result, and the rest of their season where they have been far and away the worst team in the league. Not only have they lost nine of their first ten matches to be placed the bottom of the league, but they also have the worst attack in the Ligue 1, scoring just five goals over their ten matches. Although the sacking was justified, it was a sad ending for a manager who spent his entire playing career at Metz.
Interim coach José Pinot, although he will have lots to worry about, will at least not have to be concerned with injury problems as he has a full squad available.
Lyon vs. Metz – MATCH PREDICTION
It would be a huge shock was Metz to get any kind of result from this match. That being said, the Metz interim coach will probably try to steady the ship and shut up shop for as long as possible. However, Lyon’s attack is in good form and should prove to be too much for a disorganized Metz side.
MY PICK: Lyon –2 AH (-118)
Toulouse vs. Saint Etienne
3-Way: 1: Toulouse +139; X: +225 Draw; 2: Saint Etienne +260
Spread -0.5: Toulouse +136; Saint Etienne -145
Total +2: Over -112; Under +106
Toulouse
Toulouse was fortunate to come away from Angers with a win after their only goal of the game was enough for the three points. The aforementioned goal came through a slick team-move, with Gilbert Imbula’s slightly wayward free-kick being crossed back into the middle of the box, which was flicked onto Issa Diop’s head and into the goal. Angers should have equalized, with a number of great chances throughout the game, forcing a few quality saves from Toulouse keeper Alban Lafont, and also hitting the crossbar, but Toulouse held strong for an important three points.
The win means that Toulouse is now unbeaten in three, and have won their last two matches which has elevated them to a respectable 10th place in the Ligue 1. That being said, their last performance was by no means dominating, but exactly what you’d want from an away performance; keeping the opposition team out and being clinical when getting the chances up front.
Manager Pascal Dupraz will be without winger Jimmy Durmaz (groin) and centre-back Steven Fortes (knee) through injury.
Saint Etienne
Home side Saint Etienne was left wondering how they didn’t manage to score at least one of their many chances at goal as they lost 1:0 to Montpellier. The only goal of the match came in the 21st minute, which was a scrappy goal following some pinball in the box. Later, Les Verts headed just over the bar through Vincent Pajot, who later came closer with a header, this time smacking the crossbar. Then, creative midfielder Remy Cabella went through on goal, with his lobbed attempt swiped away by the keeper. Later, to add insult to injury, Saint Etienne had two goals disallowed in the last minutes of the game, both ruled offside.
The loss saw Saint Etienne drop from third to sixth, as they were left scratching their heads as to why they weren’t able to knock the ball past the keeper in between the posts. One reason for Etienne’s lack of cutting edge in front of goal can be put down to the baffling absence of their top scorer Jonathan Bamba who has not been in the squad for their last two fixtures. One may think it could be down to Bamba refusing to sign a new contract with rumors regarding a move to Newcastle growing.
Manager Oscar Garcia will be without centre-backs Florentin Pogba (malleolar) and Loic Perrin (calf) through injury.
Toulouse vs.Saint Etienne – MATCH PREDICTION
This is a tough game to predict. While Saint Etienne on paper being the more capable side, they are missing a link with the probably absence of Jonathan Bamba, and their recent form has suffered as a result. Meanwhile, Toulouse has been in wonderful form, and with their home advantage on top of that, I would actually back them to grab the win.
MY PICK: Toulouse to WIN (+136)
