Ligue 1 bottom club Clermont host Le Havre in this weekend's gameweek 26 match at Stade Gabriel Montpied on Sunday, keen to claim their first win since mid-January.
Pascal Gastien's men are eight points from safety, while their visitors returned to winning ways against Toulouse last weekend after an extended period without maximum points.
Match preview
Clermont ideally should look forward to this weekend's game with Le Havre because of their home advantage, but the hosts have not had promising results on their turf all season, with the ongoing winless run their worst-ever sequence without winning in front of their fans in the top division.
No club in Ligue 1 has netted as little as the Lancers' seven home goals, while 20 conceded is outdone by Lyon (22) and Lorient (23), emphasising their issues at both ends of the pitch.
The upshot of Gastien's men struggling is an unwanted seven-game run without securing maximum points in the competition, a run they hope to change with the season nearing its culmination and relegation a genuine possibility.
Eight points separate Clermont and Lorient in 15th, highlighting the mathematical possibility of staying in the division if results turnaround in the final nine gameweeks.
However, the home support probably fear the side with 14 losses in Ligue 1 — a joint-high — are likelier to record a 15th defeat than they are to end the round with a fourth league victory.
As for their opponents, Le Havre ended their six-game run without winning (four losses) by claiming a 1-0 victory over Toulouse last time out.
With Strasbourg, Lorient and Nantes all losing, Luka Elsner's men rose to 12th in the standings, albeit only two points ahead of Nantes occupying the relegation playoff spot and four clear of second-bottom Metz.
The Dean Club are not out of the woods, but they hope last week's success is the fillip required to carry them through for the rest of the season as they aim to avoid immediate relegation to Ligue 2.
They hope to take advantage of Clermont's inability to get any positive result against the newly-promoted sides this term, keen to inflict the home side's fourth loss against those sides in 2023-24.
However, Elsner is aware of his side's inconsistent results all season, in which they have not secured back-to-back wins, an unwanted record they share with this weekend's opponents and Montpellier HSC.
Will that continue at Stade Gabriel Montpied this weekend?
Team News
Maxime Gonalons and Adam Mabrouk are expected Clermont absentees this weekend.
Shamar Nicholson (seven) and Muhammed Cham (six) have had more goal involvements than anyone else on the home side's roster, and both will be relied on for a positive result for the hosts.
The away side have no injury worries heading into the clash, leaving Elsner with a healthy squad for Sunday.
The fact that Christopher Operi — a defender — has more goal contributions (six) than Nabil Alioui and Mohamed Bayo (both on five) explains why the away side are averaging under a goal a game after 25 rounds.
Clermont possible starting lineup:
Diaw; Konate, Matsima, Pelmard, Borges; Gastien, Magnin; Boutobba, Cham-Saracevic, Allevinah; Nicholson
Le Havre possible starting lineup:
Desmas; Sangante, Kinkoue, Lloris, Operi; Targhalline, Kechta; Sabbi, Kuzyaev, Ayew; Bayo
We say: Clermont 1-1 Le Havre
Neither side has shown enough to suggest they can be relied on to pick maximum points this weekend, pointing to a draw as a likely outcome at the Montpied.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
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