A goal away from landing last week’s 27/1 treble, Dermot looks to some of Ligue 1’s bigger clubs to change his luck. Lyon welcome PSG to the Groupama on Sunday evening to close week 8. The other eye-catching fixture of the weekend is the clash of last season’s 2nd & 3rd placed sides when Marseille meet Rennes.
Lille Vs Toulouse
Sat 17th 20:00 GMT
Lille have been very inconsistent in the first 7 weeks of the year. The one thing that has been consistent is LOSC’s form against “lesser” or “bottom 10” sides. They have won 3 out of 3 against sides that, on paper, are weaker than they are (scoring 10 and conceding just 3). Rémy Cabella is due to miss the game through injury and Yusuf Yazici has been sent on loan so expect Fonseca to revert to a 3-4-3 system with without a clear number 10 in the remaining squad.
Les Violets secured their second win of the campaign with a 1-0 victory over an enigmatic Reims. This was a decent result given they have lost last season’s top scorer Rhys Healey for the season to an ACL injury along with sensation Rafeal Ratao for at least 6 weeks. That leaves the away side very light in attack in a game where one would think two goals would be the minimum starting point for them to win.
Lille win @ 4/5
Nice Vs Angers
Sun 18th 14:00 GMT
Nice have one of the best attacking trio’s in Ligue 1 now that ex-Montpellier strikers Delort and Laborde have been reunited along with the addition of Sofiane Diop. So far though, it hasn’t clicked. However, the free signing of Ross Barkley should provide Les Aiglons with more of a creative spark in midfield. Aaron Ramsey had shown flashes before yet another injury but one would expect Barkley to excel in Ligue 1. This game is also an excellent opportunity for everything to come together in attack, as Angers are a Ligue 2 side masquerading as a Ligue 1 side.
The last line may be harsh on a side that did the business for the column last week but there is plenty of truth in it. Angers beat a Montpellier side that was cobbled together from the leftovers of an injury and suspension decimated squad. They have conceded 10 and scored 3 in their three away games so far this season and I expect the goals allowed column to increase with Nice’s attacking trio due a big day.
Nice -1 win @ 9/5
Marseille Vs Rennes
Sun 18th 14:00 GMT
Marseille lost in disappointing fashion to Frankfurt in the UCL on Tuesday evening, going down 0-1 to the Europa League holders. In the league however, OM are tied with PSG at the top of the table. Eric Bailly picked up an injury in midweek but other than that, they have a clean bill of health. They are 4 from 4 at the Vélodrome, which is a big change from last season when Marseille had a stretch of 6 home games without a win.
Rennes will play Turkish giants Fenerbahce in the Europa League on Thursday evening and will desperately hope no more midfielders (or centre backs) end up on the injury list. Having let Jonas Martin join Lille, Les Rennais will be lacking a bit of grit in midfielder after Baptiste Santamaria tore ankle ligaments at the weekend. I expect Payet, Sanchéz and Gerson to find plenty of space between the lines.
Marseille win @ 11/10
Smart Bets
Lille win @ 4/5 (1pt)
Nice -1 win @ 9/5 (2pts)
Marseille win @ 11/10 (1pt)
Above in treble (best priced): 9/1 (1pt win)
