SM
Watford vs. Oxford Utd: 10 hrs 5 mins
Upcoming predictions and previews
Collect News Data
S
Ligue 1 | Gameweek 19
Dec 22, 2021 at 8pm UK
Stade Geoffroy-Guichard
N

St Etienne
0 - 1
Nantes


Moueffek (90+3')
FT(HT: 0-0)
Kolo (83')
Castelletto (71')

Preview: Saint-Etienne vs. Nantes - prediction, team news, lineups

:Headline: Preview: Saint-Etienne vs. Nantes - prediction, team news, lineups:
Sports Mole previews Wednesday's Ligue 1 clash between Saint-Etienne and Nantes, including predictions, team news and possible lineups.
Sports Mole

On Wednesday, the Ligue 1 season continues for Saint-Etienne and Nantes, who face each other in week 19 action from Stade Geoffroy-Guichard.

Les Verts are bottom of the table, losing four consecutive matches domestically, while La Maison Jaune have won their last two league fixtures and are currently in 10th with 25 points.


Match preview

Pascal Dupraz began his tenure as the new Saint-Etienne boss on the right foot as his side defeated a fourth-tier team in Lyon La Duchere 1-0 in their Round of 64 clash at the Coupe de France on Sunday.

The 59-year-old former striker will be called upon to work his magic and save this team from descent into Ligue 2, something that he was able to do with Evian in 2012-13, moving them up from 18th to 16th, while also rescuing Toulouse from relegation in 2015-16 when they were 10 points adrift of top-flight salvation with 10 matches left and ended up a point above Stade de Reims to remain in Ligue 1.

Dupraz takes over a side who have not found the back of the net in three consecutive league games and are in serious trouble of dropping down into the second tier of French football for the first time since the 2000-01 campaign.

Even though his victory was against a side well below their level, this team will take any positives that they can get right now, as they maintained a clean sheet for only the second time this year in all competitions and scored in a match for the first time this month.

Home field has not been much of an advantage for Les Verts this season, losing nine Ligue 1 fixtures at Geoffroy-Guichard in 2021, their worst calendar year tally in the top flight.

Things may not be looking all that good for the record 10-time French champions, but the good news for Dupraz and his team is that there are still plenty of matches to play, and they are not too far away from top-flight safety, trailing Troyes for 16th by only four points, while one victory could move them into a three-way tie with Metz and Lorient for a relegation playoff position.

They never seem to make it easy on themselves, but Les Canaris have been able to get the job done, advancing to the Round of 32 at the Coupe de France this past weekend, defeating Sochaux on penalties.

That victory in dramatic fashion has become something that manager Antoine Kombouare is used to seeing from his team, who erased a two-goal deficit to beat Lens 3-2 with a goal in the 90th minute and squeaking past Lorient 1-0 five days earlier, finding the back of the net with seven minutes remaining.

The man who led PSG to the Coupe de France as a manager in 2009-10 has to be pleased with how hard his players have fought to get out of a slump that saw them go without a win in five straight league contests before their late victory over Les Merlus.

After narrowly avoiding relegation a season ago, defeating Toulouse in a playoff on away goals, Kombourare has his team in the hunt for a place in Europe at the moment, trailing Montpellier for fifth by a mere three points and a spot in the Europa Conference League qualifiers next season.

Far too often of late, Nantes have had to fight their way back from a goal behind, scoring the opener in only one of their previous five league encounters, notching only one first-half goal over that stretch.

Some solid contributions from their midfielders have enabled them to compete in their share of matches, as they have grown tremendously in a short period.

Saint-Etienne Ligue 1 form:
  • W
  • W
  • L
  • L
  • L
  • L

Saint-Etienne form (all competitions):
  • W
  • L
  • L
  • L
  • L
  • W

Nantes Ligue 1 form:
  • D
  • L
  • D
  • L
  • W
  • W

Nantes form (all competitions):
  • L
  • D
  • L
  • W
  • W
  • W

Team News

Arnaud Nordin had the lone goal on Sunday in their victory in the Coupe de France, while Stefan Bajic collected his first clean sheet of the season, replacing Etienne Green in goal, as the young English keeper will be out for up to six weeks with a broken elbow suffered in their defeat to Reims.

Denis Bouanga scored the last Saint-Etienne goal in league play at the end of November in a 3-1 defeat to PSG, but he will not be available for this game, following his first-half red card in their previous Ligue 1 fixture.

Les Verts made four changes to their starting 11 in their last league game, with Miguel Trauco, Timothee Kolodziejczak, Zaydou Youssouf and Gabriel Silva replacing Yvann Macon, Harold Moukoudi, Adil Aouchiche and Jean-Philippe Krasso.

Moses Simon, who is third in the league in assists with five, scored the winner in the comeback victory for Nantes versus Lens, his sixth of the campaign, while Randal Kolo Muani notched a brace for his eighth and ninth goals of the season, putting him one back of Ludovic Blas for the team lead.

On Saturday, Remy Descamps replaced team captain Alban Lafont in goal in their Coupe de France tie, picking up a shutout and enabling his side to win 5-4 on penalties.

In their previous Ligue 1 match, Nantes had a few new faces in their starting 11 with Fabio, Nicolas Pallois, Wylan Cyprien and Willem Geubbels taking the place of Dennis Appiah, Simon, Samuel Moutoussamy and Kalifa Coulibaly.

Saint-Etienne possible starting lineup:
Bajic; Trauco, Kolodziejczak, Nade, Moukoudi; Neyou, Camara, Boudebouz; Krasso, Khazri, Nordin

Nantes possible starting lineup:
Lafont; Fabio, Castelletto, Girotto, Merlin; Kolo Muani, Cyprien, Chirivella, Coco; Simon, Blas


We say: Saint-Etienne 1-0 Nantes

Dupraz has a reputation for reviving teams on the brink of relegation, and playing Nantes could be just what they need to get back to winning ways in the league, losing only two of their previous 17 Ligue 1 affairs versus La Maison Jaune.

Nantes have had difficulty against the lower teams in the French top flight, and they have struggled away from home, winning only one of their last six road games.



Top tip

Our expert tipster partners at Sporita.com are predicting over 1.5 goals in this match. Click here to find out what else they are predicting for this game and for more of their tried-and-tested football tips.Over 1.5:data




body check tags ::

Previews by email

Click here to get Sports Mole's daily email of previews and predictions for every major game!


amp_article__473482 : Collect and Make Data not in DataBase  : 
last updated article - 2024-06-05 12:57:02:
html db last update - 2024-06-05 12:57:02 :

ex - 7200 : read : write cache and make html
Read more!
Share this article now:


Sports Mole provides in-depth previews and predictions for every match from the biggest leagues and competitions in world football.
AL
Sign up for our FREE daily preview newsletter direct to your inbox!
Recommended Next on SM
Sunday's Ligue 1 football predictions including Bordeaux vs. Lyon
Major transfer boost: Man United 'given encouragement' in pursuit of Gyokeres
Premier League Table
TeamPWDLFAGDPTS
1Paris Saint-GermainPSG108202982126
2Marseille1062223121120
3MonacoMonaco10622157820
4Lille10532169718
5Nice104421991016
6Lyon104331715215
7Lens1035297214
8Reims104241615114
9StrasbourgStrasbourg103431919013
10Auxerre104151718-113
11Brest104151316-313
12Toulouse103341111012
13Rennes103251316-311
14NantesNantes102441214-210
15Angers102441116-510
16Saint-EtienneSt Etienne103161024-1410
17Le HavreLe Havre10307820-129
18Montpellier HSCMontpellier10118830-224
Scroll for more - Tap for full version


Sports Mole provides in-depth previews and predictions for every match from the biggest leagues and competitions in world football.
AL
Sign up for our FREE daily preview newsletter direct to your inbox!

Loading ...

Failed to load data.

history www

Felix, Nkunku net brace as Chelsea run rampant in demolition of FC Noah

1

FN

Have Palmer, Rice made the cut? Lee Carsley's final England squad revealed!

2

HP

Rice question answered, will Odegaard start? Arsenal predicted XI against Chelsea

NEW

3

RQ

Preview: Crystal Palace vs. Fulham - prediction, team news, lineups

4

PC

Messi MVP quest continues, but will Busquets play? Inter Miami predicted XI vs. Atlanta

5

MM

Amorim or Guardiola? Man City 'seriously interested' in Man United-linked attacker

6

AO

Preview: Angers vs. PSG - prediction, team news, lineups

7

PA

Preview: Strasbourg vs. Monaco - prediction, team news, lineups

8

PS

Preview: Birmingham vs. Northampton - prediction, team news, lineups

9

PB

Preview: Brighton vs. Man City - prediction, team news, lineups

10

PB


. . . . . . . . . . . . . . .