Nantesvs.Lille

Bruno Genesio's men were dumped out of Europe by Borussia Dortmund on Wednesday night, losing 2-1 at the Stade Pierre-Mauroy despite holding the German giants to a draw in the first leg, meaning all focus will now be on finishing in the top four.

Match preview

For Lille, the story was a familiar one on Wednesday night, as they exited the Champions League at the last-16 stage once again.

On each of the previous three occasions when Les Dogues have gotten that far in the competition, they have been eliminated, and despite being fancied pre-game, and leading at the interval, Genesio's side were undone by a BVB fightback, and a controversial penalty decision that went against them.

While winning the Champions League was never a realistic possibility, the defeat does mean that Lille must now make sure they finish in the top four this season if they want to return to Europe's top-tier competition again.

Thankfully for Genesio, he has seen his side recover from some stuttering mid-season form to bolster their chances of another top-four finish.

Lille have now won three of their last four matches in Ligue 1, as many as they had managed in the nine fixtures preceding this run, and leaders Paris Saint-Germain have been the only team capable of stopping them during this mini run.

Wins over in-form Rennes and top-four rivals Monaco came before their routine 1-0 victory against bottom-of-the-table Montpellier last weekend, keeping LOSC within touching distance of those Champions League positions.

The visitors start the weekend in fifth, but only goal difference is keeping them below Monaco, while third-place Nice are also in reach, just two points further ahead.

Next up are opponents against whom Lille have a superb record against too, because they have not beaten a team in Ligue 1 in the 21st century as often as Nantes - 23 wins in 38 games.

The hosts are currently on an 18-game winless run against Les Dogues, but they did hold them to a 1-1 draw at the Pierre-Mauroy earlier this season, providing them with the opportunity to remain unbeaten against Lille in a single season for the first time since 2006-07, when both games were drawn.

Nantes may have to hope that their defence is rock solid though, because attack has been a weak point for them of late, falling to defeat in both of their last two league matches without scoring - against Marseille, and then Strasbourg last time out.

The Canaries have not lost three in a row without scoring since manager Antoine Kombouare's first spell in charge back in 2021, but he finds himself under pressure again since returning to the club.

That defeat to Strasbourg last weekend means Nantes are within the sights of those in the bottom three once again, with 16th-placed Le Havre just three points back ahead of the weekend.

Familiar surroundings may not provide much comfort either, because out of all the teams who have been ever-present in Ligue 1 since the start of last season, none have taken as few points as Nantes at home (25 from a possible 87 on offer).

Nantes Ligue 1 form:

W

L

L

W

L

L

Lille Ligue 1 form:

W

L

W

W

L

W

Lille form (all competitions):

W

W

L

D

W

L

Team News

No sooner had Francis Coquelin got himself fit and broke into the Nantes squad after a January move, he is now sidelined again with a calf issue that saw him miss the defeat to Strasbourg.

Fellow midfielder Douglas Augusto is also struggling with a minor knock sustained last weekend, joining Tino Kadewere and Nathan Zeze on the treatment table, while Alban Lafont and Fabien Centonze also remain absent.

Kelvin Amian was one of the better performers for Nantes in their defeat against Strasbourg, but he will be missing here after hitting the limit of yellow cards, triggering a one-match suspension.

Lille's Jonathan David is coming back into form ahead of a potential exit in the summer, after netting in Wednesday's defeat to Dortmund, taking him to 33 goal involvements for the season, and he will look to score in a third straight Ligue 1 game here.

David's partner-in-crime Edon Zhegrova is also set to depart in the summer, but the Kosovan winger remains sidelined with a groin injury that has kept him out for three months.

Fortunately, Genesio was able to welcome Osame Sahraoui back from injury in midweek, while Ethan Mbappe was also available after a recent setback, but Samuel Umtiti and Tiago Santos remain out in defence.

Nantes possible starting lineup:

Lopes; Coco, Castelletto, Pallois, Leroux; Thomas, Lepenant, Pedro Chirivella, Simon; Abline, Mohamed

Lille possible starting lineup:

Chevalier; Meunier, Diakite, Alexsandro, Gudmundsson; Andre Gomes, Andre, Angel Gomes; Cabella, David, Haraldsson

We say: Nantes 1-2 Lille

Nantes may have held Lille to a draw in the reverse fixture, but they have gone 18 games without a win against Les Dogues, and have lost at least one fixture against them in every season dating back to 2007.

Written by

Andrew Delaney

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