The French Ligue 1 goes on this weekend with the Round 13 games, and on Friday evening, November 17th, 2017, we have a chance to see two exciting duels – Lille hosts Saint Etienne at Stade Pierre-Mauroy, while Amiens welcomes Monaco at Stade de la Licorne.
In this preview we’ll take a close look at these four teams, so don’t waste your time and check out our betting tips and predictions, like always here on GetMoreSports.
LILLE vs. SAINT ETIENNE
3-Way: 1: Lille +145; X: +231 Draw; 2: Saint Etienne +250 at BetDSI Sportsbook
Spread -0.5: Lille +137; Saint Etienne -143
Total +2: Over -125; Under +120
LILLE
The four-time French champions are still in the danger zone, even they’ve convincingly beaten Metz on the road, 3:0, in the previous round of the French Ligue 1. However, they can now face the upcoming challenges with more self-confidence, after a nice display at Stade Saint- Symphorien. In the clash of the two bottom sides Lille’s players put on a great performance to record their first victory since the opening week of the season when they’ve beaten Nantes at home, 3:0.
Metz started the match in a better form, and it was Lille’s goalkeeper Mike Maignan who stopped them taking the lead with a couple of brilliant saves. Lille was harmless until the injury time of the first half when Jonathan Rivierez brought down Nicolas Pepe inside the box. Pepe converted the penalty kick, and it was a cruel punishment for Metz’s players, whose game simply fall apart in the second half. The 22-year old midfielder Fares Bahlouli doubled the lead in the 67th minute with a perfect right-foot shot, and in the 87th minute, Nicolas Pepe scored his second of the game for convincing 3:0 away victory.
After the first twelve rounds, Lille is sitting at the 19th place of the French Ligue 1 table with nine points, a 9:15 goal difference and a form of WLLDL, but they still have to finish the game of the eighth round at Amiens (abandoned due to a collapsed barrier). The 22-year old forward Nicolas Pepe scored a brace against Metz, and now he’s a team’s leading scorer with two goals in nine appearances. The 21-year old Brazilian winger Luiz Araujo, who joined the club this summer from Sao Paulo, is still underperforming, and he was substituted after the first half in the previous match.
The manager Marcelo Bielsa has a lot of concerns over his team’s play, and for the next game, he will be without the 25-year old centre-back Adama Soumaoro (Achilles tendon rupture), while all other players are ready to go.
SAINT ETIENNE
The Saints were heavily beaten by Lion, 5:0 at home stadium in the previous round of the French Ligue 1, so their fans have decided to invade the pitch after Lyon’s fifth goal. There was another good reason for the interruption, as Lyon’s player Nabil Fekir provoked them after his second goal of the game and fifth for the visitors. It was another horrible night for Saint Etienne players, who earned just one point in the last three games, while they failed to score on those three occasions.
After the first twelve rounds The Saints are sitting at the sixth place of the French Ligue 1 table with 18 points and a 13:15 goal difference, but now they are six points behind Marseille at the fourth spot which leads to the UEFA Europa League next year. They created 102 scoring chances so far along with a decent 81% of an average pass accuracy. The 21-year old winger Jonathan Bamba is leading the team with four goals in 10 appearances this season, also adding one assist to his name. The 25-year old midfielder Bryan Dabo bagged two goals in nine apps, while the fans surely expect more from the talented 24-year old striker Lois Diony, who’s still goalless in nine matches this season.
The manager Oscar Garcia needs to work more with his team on their attacking game, especially after some poor performance in the last couple of weeks. He’s still without some important players, as Florentin Pogba (malleolar injury), Loic Perrin (calf injury), and Romain Hamouma (wound) are all doubtful for the next match against Lille, while the centre-back Leo Lacroix will serve the red card suspension.
LILLE vs. SAINT ETIENNE – Match Prediction
The visitors are playing poorly recently, particularly at the front, while Lille needs a positive result and a good game after an awful start of the season. I think we’ll see a close game and a great battle in the midfield, in which at least one team will not score.
MY PICK: Both teams to score NO (-115)
AMIENS vs. MONACO
3-Way: 1: Amiens +600; X: +355 Draw; 2: Monaco -154 at BetDSI Sportsbook
Spread +1: Amiens +102; Monaco -108
Total +2.5: Over -110; Under +110
AMIENS
The Unicorns had another good game against Montpellier on the road in the previous round of the French Ligue 1, when they managed to grab a point after a great battle. They had a wonderful chance to take the lead in the first half when Moussa Konate hit the post with a beautiful left-foot volley. Montpellier took the lead in the 82nd minute, but The Unicorns didn’t despair, and they leveled the game just six minutes later when the Brazilian left-back Danilo Avelar took an acrobatic shot to find the net. It was one of the best goals so far in the French Ligue 1, just enough for Amiens to stay undefeated at Montpellier.
After the first twelve games, The Unicorns are at the 17th place with 11 points, a 7:13 goal difference and a form of DDWLL. They are still a huge candidate to finish the campaign in the drop zone, but they showed us some signs of improvement in the last couple of weeks. The forwards Moussa Konate and Gael Kakuta are leading the team with two goals each, while the fans expect more from a 27-year old striker Lacina Traore, who’s playing on loan from Monaco.
The manager Christophe Pelissier prefers a defensive and patient approach, and he’s certainly satisfied with team’s displays in the previous three rounds. He doesn’t have any injury worries, so he can field his best eleven against heavyweight Monaco on Friday evening.
MONACO
Monaco hammered Guingamp, 6:0, at Stade Louis II in the previous round of the French Ligue 1, even they played without the best player Radamel Falcao due to an injury. The Red and Whites showed some excellent performance and they bagged four goals just in the first half. The 26-year old striker Guido Carillo scored his first brace of the season with two excellent headers, while the 22-year old midfielder Adama Traore also scored two goals in his third Ligue 1 app this season. The 24-year old defensive midfielder Fabinho played his 200th match for Monaco, and he completed the celebration with a goal from the penalty kick.
After the first twelve rounds, Monaco is laying at the second spot of the French Ligue 1 table with 28 points, a 34:12 goal difference and a form of WWWLD. At home, they are deadly with five wins and one draw, while both defeats came on the road against Lyon, 3:2, and Nice, 4:0. The 31-year old Columbian striker Radamel Falcao is leading his team with 13 goals in nine appearances, and he’s also a Ligue 1 top scorer along with Edinson Cavani from Paris SG. The 21-year old winger Rony Lopes is a leading assistant with five dishes in 12 apps, while Joao Moutinho, Almamy Toure, and Jorge all made four assists so far.
The manager Leonardo Jardim is still without the 22-year old winger Thomas Lemar (shoulder injury), while Radamel Falcao (hamstring injury) is doubtful for the next game.
AMIENS vs. MONACO – Match Prediction
Monaco is a favorite in this one and I expect to see them winning all three points to keep the pace with the leader Paris SG. The visitors will play against RB Leipzig next Tuesday in the fifth round of the Champions League, so maybe they will save some energy against Amiens. On the other side, the home team will play defensively, and they will try to get something in front of the home fans, so I expect to see goals here, but you never know when Monaco is playing, which is why I’ll go with the number of goals scored in this clash.
MY PICK: Over 2.5 goals (-110)
