Toulouse could lose their position in the Ligue 1 standings to Strasbourg in Sunday's round 28 fixture at Stadium de Toulouse.
The hosts returned to winning ways after two defeats on the trot last time out, while Patrick Vieira hopes to win for the third game running, keen to keep climbing the table after a pitiful start to 2024.
Match preview
Carles Martinez Novell was relieved to avoid a third straight loss in Ligue 1 after the club's 3-0 victory over Clermont last time out to banish memories of defeats to Le Havre (1-0) and Lyon (3-2) before the international break.
That triumph against the division's bottom side prevented this weekend's opponents from supplanting Le Tef in the standings heading into this round's match, with the home side possibly moving to 10th if they claim maximum points and Lyon are beaten by relegation-threatened Nantes.
While the lowly opponent must be considered, it was striking that a clean sheet in that March 31 success at Clermont was Toulouse's first since their 1-0 win at Metz to start 2024, with their last home Ligue 1 shutout coming against Rennes in mid-December.
It remains to be seen if Novell's side will claim successive clean sheets in the competition this weekend, having triumphed three times in front of their supporters all season, drawing five and losing as many in 13 domestic fixtures.
Contrarily, six wins from 10 league matches in 2024 is a Ligue 1-high at the start of 2024, even if four of those fixtures have come on their travels.
Despite continued fan unrest due to BlueCo's ownership, Strasbourg hope to notch a third straight league victory after wins against Nantes (3-1) and Rennes (2-0).
Vieira's side have struggled for consistency all season but did win three matches on the trot in the competition at the backend of 2023, defeating Le Havre (2-1), Lorient (2-1) and Lille (2-1), and a similar outcome on Sunday sees them rise above the host team.
Beating Toulouse will require another admirable showing on their travels to match the victory over Nantes, when Emanuel Emegha notched a brace to secure La Racing's third road triumph of a challenging campaign under the 1998 World Cup winner.
That win at Nantes came after Strasbourg had played out draws in three of four matches on their travels, losing 3-1 to Lens, and they hope to prevent the hosts from claiming a third home success in their last four.
Strasbourg's ongoing scoring run in 13 consecutive Ligue 1 games against Toulouse (26 goals) bodes well for their prospects, as Vieira hopes his team somehow prevent the home side from scoring more than them on Sunday.
Team News
While Toulouse have no confirmed absentees, Cesar Gelabert and Naatan Skytta will be checked before this weekend's game.
Vincent Sierro (two) and Thijs Dallinga netted in the home side's recent Ligue 1 win at Clermont, and both players should start on Sunday, with the latter expected to lead the attack.
Vieira has several injured players in his squad, with Angelo Gabriel (groin), Ibrahima Sissoko (hamstring) and Lebo Mothiba (knee) ruled out for Strasbourg. Karol Fila has missed the campaign's entirety with a knee injury and is not expected to start for La Racing against Toulouse.
While one Chelsea loanee (Angelo) is not expected to play any part this weekend, Andrey Santos is anticipated to make a third-straight start for the visitors, keen to build on commendable midfield showings against Nantes and Rennes.
Toulouse possible starting lineup:
Restes; Biakolo, Costa, Nicolaisen; Kamanzi, Sierro, Spierings, Suazo; Donnum, Gboho; Dallinga
Strasbourg possible starting lineup:
Bellaarouch; Guilbert, Perrin, Sow; Senaya, Santos, Diarra, Delaine; Bakwa, Gameiro; Emegha
We say: Toulouse 2-2 Strasbourg
Strasbourg seldom lose in Toulouse, with a 2-0 defeat in January 2005 La Racing's only reverse in previous visits to this weekend's opponent, and they should avoid defeat to Novell's men in another high-scoring game to match last season's corresponding fixture.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
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