Lille will aim to avoid going five games without a win in Ligue 1 when they welcome Strasbourg to the Stade Pierre-Mauroy on Sunday afternoon.

Les Dogues suffered a 2-1 defeat to Reims in midweek, while Julian Stephan's side kept their Champions League dreams alive by beating Rennes by the same scoreline.

Match preview

Anything Renato Sanches can do, Yunis Abdelhamid can do better, as the visiting crowd at the Stade Auguste-Delaune were stunned into silence during a 2-1 loss to mid-table Reims on Wednesday night - their second defeat on the bounce in the division.

After Marshall Munetsi had scrambled home the game's opening goal in the first half, Lille lynchpin Sanches responded with a sublime long-range effort before Reims centre-back and captain Abdelhamid produced an equally exquisite strike from outside the area in the dying embers of the match.

Jocelyn Gourvennec's side will most likely have witnessed Paris Saint-Germain end their title defence by the time their game with Strasbourg rolls around, and their recent spate of poor results has left them ninth in the rankings and fighting an uphill battle to qualify for Europe.

An eight-point chasm currently separates Lille from the top five, and remaining fixtures with Nice, Rennes and Monaco does not spell optimism for the faltering champions, who have taken just two points from the last 12 on offer in the top flight.

Not since January 2020 have Lille slumped to three successive defeats in the top flight, but they enter Sunday's game with Strasbourg having won just one of their last six league games at the Stade Pierre-Mauroy - failing to score in three of them as they prepare to officially cede the title to PSG.

Julian Stephan famously led Rennes into the Champions League during his Roazhon Park tenure, but there was no room for sentimentality for the 41-year-old on Wednesday night as he attempts to engineer the unlikeliest of top-three finishes for Strasbourg.

Habib Diallo took all of four minutes to open the scoring with a calm left-footed volley before Martin Terrier's 20th goal of a phenomenal season levelled proceedings, but Strasbourg's own star striker in Ludovic Ajorque and his 6ft 5in frame headed home the winning goal with 13 minutes left to play.

Now unbeaten in 11 Ligue 1 matches during a remarkable run, Les Coureurs are one of three Champions League-challenging sides currently on 56 points, with Stephan's men sitting pretty in fourth and only behind Rennes in the final podium place on goal difference.

Fifth-placed Monaco could temporarily gain the upper hand in the race for Champions League football with all three points against Saint-Etienne on Saturday, and while Strasbourg's 11-game unbeaten run certainly looks impressive on paper, they meet Lille having drawn each of their last four away matches in the top flight.

Furthermore, not since August 2017 have Strasbourg beaten Lille in Ligue 1, with Les Dogues making it eight top-flight games without defeat against Les Coureurs with a 2-1 win earlier this term, but the two sides are only heading in opposite directions with five games left to play.

Team News

Lille manager Gourvennec will be handed an attacking boost with the return of Burak Yilmaz from suspension for Sunday's game, but Tiago Djalo will serve the second of a two-game ban this week.

Gourvennec is hopeful that Sven Botman may be able to make his comeback here, but Ivo Grbic and Xeka are on the sidelines, and Hatem Ben Arfa has been ostracised from the squad after a reported falling out with his manager.

Benjamin Andre was forced into central defence for the loss to Reims but could retake his position in the middle if Botman is fit enough to return, while Yilmaz and Jonathan David should both return to form their strike partnership.

Meanwhile, Strasbourg have no fresh injury or suspension concerns to worry about for the trip to Lille, with Abdul Majeed Waris the only notable absentee alongside Ismael Doukoure, Nordine Kandil and Marvin Elimbi.

Stephan's skipper Dimitri Lienard was hooked at half time in the win over Rennes, and the visiting coach may be more tempted to bring in a natural left-sided player in Anthony Caci.

Kevin Gameiro came off the bench to provide a brilliant cross for Ajorque's winner in midweek, but the 34-year-old is fighting an uphill battle to regain his spot in the XI.

Lille possible starting lineup:
Jardim; Celik, Fonte, Botman, Gudmundsson; Zhegrova, Andre, Sanches, Bamba; David, Yilmaz

Strasbourg possible starting lineup:
Sels; Guilbert, Perrin, Djiku, Nyamsi, Caci; Sissoko, Aholou; Thomasson; Ajorque, Diallo

We say: Lille 1-1 Strasbourg

Lille's starting lineup should have more of a familiar feel about it this weekend, with two well-rested strikers in David and Yilmaz desperately needing to find their shooting boots sooner rather than later.

Strasbourg have certainly been the draw specialists away from home in recent weeks, and while one point will not do them many favours in their podium push, an altered Lille side should manage to avoid a third straight loss with a hard-fought stalemate.

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