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Ligue 1 Preview: Round 16
With a number of local derbies, this weekend’s set of fixtures in Le Championnat promise to be some of the most intriguing and potentially the most surprising of the season to date…
Dec 4, 2009 6:42:33 AM
Saturday, December 5, 2009 (all kick-off times CET)
19:00 Montpellier vs. Le Mans
19:00 Nice vs. Olympique de Marseille
19:00 Stade Rennais vs. Lorient
19:00 Saint-Etienne vs. Sochaux
19:00 Valenciennes vs. Monaco
21:00 Girondins de Bordeaux vs. Paris Saint-Germain (full preview)
Sunday, December 6, 2009
17:00 Auxerre vs. Nancy
17:00 Boulogne-Sur-Mer vs. Racing Club de Lens
17:00 Grenoble Foot38 vs. Toulouse
21:00 Lille vs. Olympique Lyonnais
Montpellier vs. Le Mans
Le Mans announced this week that they will change their name for the beginning of next season. Instead of being known officially as Le Mans UC 72, they will become simply LEMANS. In order to showcase their new image in the top flight, Paulo Duarte’s side had better start accruing some positive results. Becoming detached in the bottom three, MUC’s prospects look a little bleak.
A weekend trip to Montpellier should be no source of easy joy. La Paillade have been buoyant in the early weeks of the campaign and boast fifth spot. Johann Carrasso is nearing a return for Rene Girard’s men, who had last weekend’s fixture against Monaco postponed due to a swine flu outbreak in their camp. All the victims should play, aside from Victor Hugo Montano, who is suspended.
Le Mans continue to miss Fredrik Stromstad, though they welcome back Geder and Guillaume Loriot, who both missed last weekend’s 1-1 draw with Saint-Etienne. Striker Thorstein Helstad’s form has been weak, so expect him to drop out.
Nice vs. Olympique de Marseille
It’s a testing trip to Nice for Didier Deschamps’ Marseille, who will feel they have bigger fish to fry in the Champions League next week. L’OM will host Real Madrid, knowing that a sizeable win would guarantee a spot in the last 16, though any slip from Milan in Zurich would also open the door. They boast only a long shot of qualification.
Nevertheless, ‘DD’ could well rest some of his top stars for this derby match. Stephane Mbia continues to be rated as very doubtful for les Phoceens, who will also be without centre-back Julien Rodriguez due to injury.
Nice have had a whole load of question marks over their team this week, most notably Loic Remy. Les Aiglons’ top scorer has been vital to their resurgence of late and it was little surprise to see them struggle in Sochaux last weekend after losing their talisman. Many of their doubts, including David Hellebuyck and Habib Bamogo, are expected to be fit to feature.
Stade Rennais vs. Lorient
The Breton derby between Rennes and Lorient will doubtlessly be a hotly contested affair, with les Merlus going into the game with the rare luxury of looking down on les Rouges et Noir. A passionate home crowd will be looking for that situation to be reversed as quickly as possible, hoping for a repeat of the strong performance their favourites managed in drawing with Lyon last weekend.
Kader Mangane definitely misses out for the hosts, who hope to have goalkeeper Nicolas Douchez back in the fold by kick-off. Jimmy Briand and Jerome Leroy are both close to match fitness and could be included in the group of 18.
Lorient have equally few selection issues. Goalkeeper Fabien Audard has had a bad back and has not participated fully in training over the last week, so he may well be forced to take a place on the bench. Franco Sosa should shake an injury to play at right-back, while regular left-back Jeremy Morel is still missing.
Saint-Etienne vs. Sochaux
Still perilously balanced a little above the relegation zone, Alain Perrin’s Saint-Etienne team really should be capable of achieving more. Injuries continue to wreak havoc in the Loire side’s squad, with Augusto Fernandez the latest victim in midweek. Stathis Tavlaridis is banned for les Verts, who will be without a good handful of first pick players.
With only one win in six, pressure is beginning to mount on Perrin. Coming off a disappointing 1-1 draw with Le Mans, a hectic December schedule may see the former Portsmouth boss axed if results do not quickly improve.
Sochaux have played 13 Ligue 1 games this term and have yet to register a solitary draw. Francis Gillot’s side have just about managed to muddle their way to a relatively safe position at this stage of the campaign, though they have rarely looked particularly incisive. Charlie Davies is, of course, still missing, but he is the only automatic choice unavailable.
Valenciennes vs. Monaco
Philippe Montanier’s Valenciennes side have confounded the critics with their strong start to the campaign but were comprehensively outplayed by local rivals Lille last weekend. Turning in their worst showing of the season to date, VA slumped to a very disappointing 4-0 loss.
Jacques Abardonado limped off early in that encounter and will probably miss Saturday evening’s match. Both Milan Bisevac and Rafael could return to the first team to compensate for this loss. Long-term problems Jonathan Lacourt and Nicolas Penneteau continue to make slow progress.
Les Monegasques, meanwhile, have seen their early season momentum dissipate in a disappointing manner of late. They have lost games against Bordeaux and Auxerre, while a 0-0 draw against Grenoble inspired little confidence. Last weekend’s game against Montpellier was postponed because of swine flu in the visiting camp. Captain Alejandro Alonso will be the most costly absentee on Saturday.
Girondins de Bordeaux vs. Paris Saint-Germain
For a full preview click here…
Auxerre vs. Nancy
A fine seven match winning streak that AJA enjoyed was brought to an end by PSG last weekend. The 1-0 defeat in Paris was not unexpected as the visitors were without star man Ireneusz Jelen, who will return this weekend, but the Burgundy outfit were somewhat unfortunate in the manner in which they lost. Romanian forward Daniel Niculae missed several prime chances and could be dropped to the bench for his indiscretions.
Injury-wise, not a great deal has changed for Jean Fernandez’s third-placed side. No essential components of their squad are missing, though there are a handful of long-term issues, including Kevin Lejeune.
Pablo Correa’s Nancy side will not relish the trip west to tackle in-form Auxerre. ASNL have lost all of their last three matches and it has been several weeks since they last produced an impressive performance. Overwhelmed 3-0 by Bordeaux in wet conditions last weekend, more will be needed from the Lorraine club if they are to prosper on Sunday afternoon.
Boulogne-Sur-Mer vs. Racing Club de Lens
A 5-2 defeat by PSG in midweek was a lesson in killing off a team for Boulogne, who actually competed well with their more illustrious opponents for a good chunk of that game. What killed them was a terrible nine minute spell after the hour mark in which they leaked four goals.
The grip of an injury crisis refuses to loosen its grasp on USBCO, who will be shorn of several of their best offensive players again. Gregory Thil is the most obvious concern, and the striker will not return until the New Year. Laurent Agouazi and Alexandre Cuvillier are other influential absentees in the attacking sphere.
Lens have no such injury issues. Geoffrey Doumeng, who has been largely frozen out of the squad this season, has returned to training over the course of the week. Without any other major headaches, Lens, who defeated Marseille 1-0 last weekend, will travel to their near neighbours with expectations of three points.
Grenoble Foot38 vs. Toulouse
The performances of GF38 may be steadily improving, but that has helped their league position little. Mehmet Bazdarevic’s side remain rooted to the foot of the table with just three points, six marks shy of their nearest opponents and 11 back from safety.
Three draws in succession have certainly been promising, and the Iserois club were only seconds away from holding out to claim three points against Lorient last weekend. One of the goal scorers from that 2-2 draw, Jimmy Juan, will be suspended for this encounter. Pierre Boya, Josip Tadic and Sofiane Feghouli remain out due to injury problems. Laurent Courtois is suspended.
A 1-0 Europa League win over Partizan was achieved by Alain Casanova’s rotated Toulouse side on Thursday, and they will be looking to build on that success in Ligue 1 play. After a poor start to the campaign, last season’s fourth-placed outfit have climbed to tenth, though real consistency has been an issue. There have been no major changes on the injury front, with Mauro Cetto continuing to sit out.
Lille vs. Olympique Lyonnais
Coming back from a painful trip to Spain, in which they lost 3-1 to Valencia in the Europa League, Lille have the chance to quickly banish any unpleasant memories when they tackle Lyon on Sunday night. Having won twice at home against OL last season – in the league and in the Coupe de France – Rudi Garcia will be hoping to complete a famous hat-trick.
Nicolas Plestan and Stephane Dumont remain the big injury concerns for les Dogues, who showed their pedigree prior to the international break with a crushing 2-0 win over champions Bordeaux at home. A 4-0 win over local rivals Valenciennes last weekend was equally impressive. Franck Beria is banned.
If Lille have impressed of late, it’s fair to say that Lyon haven’t. Les Gones may have lost only once in their last five in all competitions, but they have yet to win in that same sequence. Jeremy Toulalan remains a big doubt for Claude Puel’s side, while Brazilian international Michel Bastos is suspended.
Robin Bairner, Goal.com
19:00 Montpellier vs. Le Mans
19:00 Nice vs. Olympique de Marseille
19:00 Stade Rennais vs. Lorient
19:00 Saint-Etienne vs. Sochaux
19:00 Valenciennes vs. Monaco
21:00 Girondins de Bordeaux vs. Paris Saint-Germain (full preview)
Sunday, December 6, 2009
17:00 Auxerre vs. Nancy
17:00 Boulogne-Sur-Mer vs. Racing Club de Lens
17:00 Grenoble Foot38 vs. Toulouse
21:00 Lille vs. Olympique Lyonnais
Montpellier vs. Le Mans
Le Mans announced this week that they will change their name for the beginning of next season. Instead of being known officially as Le Mans UC 72, they will become simply LEMANS. In order to showcase their new image in the top flight, Paulo Duarte’s side had better start accruing some positive results. Becoming detached in the bottom three, MUC’s prospects look a little bleak.
A weekend trip to Montpellier should be no source of easy joy. La Paillade have been buoyant in the early weeks of the campaign and boast fifth spot. Johann Carrasso is nearing a return for Rene Girard’s men, who had last weekend’s fixture against Monaco postponed due to a swine flu outbreak in their camp. All the victims should play, aside from Victor Hugo Montano, who is suspended.
Le Mans continue to miss Fredrik Stromstad, though they welcome back Geder and Guillaume Loriot, who both missed last weekend’s 1-1 draw with Saint-Etienne. Striker Thorstein Helstad’s form has been weak, so expect him to drop out.
Nice vs. Olympique de Marseille
It’s a testing trip to Nice for Didier Deschamps’ Marseille, who will feel they have bigger fish to fry in the Champions League next week. L’OM will host Real Madrid, knowing that a sizeable win would guarantee a spot in the last 16, though any slip from Milan in Zurich would also open the door. They boast only a long shot of qualification.
Nevertheless, ‘DD’ could well rest some of his top stars for this derby match. Stephane Mbia continues to be rated as very doubtful for les Phoceens, who will also be without centre-back Julien Rodriguez due to injury.
Nice have had a whole load of question marks over their team this week, most notably Loic Remy. Les Aiglons’ top scorer has been vital to their resurgence of late and it was little surprise to see them struggle in Sochaux last weekend after losing their talisman. Many of their doubts, including David Hellebuyck and Habib Bamogo, are expected to be fit to feature.
Stade Rennais vs. Lorient
The Breton derby between Rennes and Lorient will doubtlessly be a hotly contested affair, with les Merlus going into the game with the rare luxury of looking down on les Rouges et Noir. A passionate home crowd will be looking for that situation to be reversed as quickly as possible, hoping for a repeat of the strong performance their favourites managed in drawing with Lyon last weekend.
Kader Mangane definitely misses out for the hosts, who hope to have goalkeeper Nicolas Douchez back in the fold by kick-off. Jimmy Briand and Jerome Leroy are both close to match fitness and could be included in the group of 18.
Lorient have equally few selection issues. Goalkeeper Fabien Audard has had a bad back and has not participated fully in training over the last week, so he may well be forced to take a place on the bench. Franco Sosa should shake an injury to play at right-back, while regular left-back Jeremy Morel is still missing.
Saint-Etienne vs. Sochaux
Still perilously balanced a little above the relegation zone, Alain Perrin’s Saint-Etienne team really should be capable of achieving more. Injuries continue to wreak havoc in the Loire side’s squad, with Augusto Fernandez the latest victim in midweek. Stathis Tavlaridis is banned for les Verts, who will be without a good handful of first pick players.
With only one win in six, pressure is beginning to mount on Perrin. Coming off a disappointing 1-1 draw with Le Mans, a hectic December schedule may see the former Portsmouth boss axed if results do not quickly improve.
Sochaux have played 13 Ligue 1 games this term and have yet to register a solitary draw. Francis Gillot’s side have just about managed to muddle their way to a relatively safe position at this stage of the campaign, though they have rarely looked particularly incisive. Charlie Davies is, of course, still missing, but he is the only automatic choice unavailable.
Valenciennes vs. Monaco
Philippe Montanier’s Valenciennes side have confounded the critics with their strong start to the campaign but were comprehensively outplayed by local rivals Lille last weekend. Turning in their worst showing of the season to date, VA slumped to a very disappointing 4-0 loss.
Jacques Abardonado limped off early in that encounter and will probably miss Saturday evening’s match. Both Milan Bisevac and Rafael could return to the first team to compensate for this loss. Long-term problems Jonathan Lacourt and Nicolas Penneteau continue to make slow progress.
Les Monegasques, meanwhile, have seen their early season momentum dissipate in a disappointing manner of late. They have lost games against Bordeaux and Auxerre, while a 0-0 draw against Grenoble inspired little confidence. Last weekend’s game against Montpellier was postponed because of swine flu in the visiting camp. Captain Alejandro Alonso will be the most costly absentee on Saturday.
Girondins de Bordeaux vs. Paris Saint-Germain
For a full preview click here…
Auxerre vs. Nancy
A fine seven match winning streak that AJA enjoyed was brought to an end by PSG last weekend. The 1-0 defeat in Paris was not unexpected as the visitors were without star man Ireneusz Jelen, who will return this weekend, but the Burgundy outfit were somewhat unfortunate in the manner in which they lost. Romanian forward Daniel Niculae missed several prime chances and could be dropped to the bench for his indiscretions.
Injury-wise, not a great deal has changed for Jean Fernandez’s third-placed side. No essential components of their squad are missing, though there are a handful of long-term issues, including Kevin Lejeune.
Pablo Correa’s Nancy side will not relish the trip west to tackle in-form Auxerre. ASNL have lost all of their last three matches and it has been several weeks since they last produced an impressive performance. Overwhelmed 3-0 by Bordeaux in wet conditions last weekend, more will be needed from the Lorraine club if they are to prosper on Sunday afternoon.
Boulogne-Sur-Mer vs. Racing Club de Lens
A 5-2 defeat by PSG in midweek was a lesson in killing off a team for Boulogne, who actually competed well with their more illustrious opponents for a good chunk of that game. What killed them was a terrible nine minute spell after the hour mark in which they leaked four goals.
The grip of an injury crisis refuses to loosen its grasp on USBCO, who will be shorn of several of their best offensive players again. Gregory Thil is the most obvious concern, and the striker will not return until the New Year. Laurent Agouazi and Alexandre Cuvillier are other influential absentees in the attacking sphere.
Lens have no such injury issues. Geoffrey Doumeng, who has been largely frozen out of the squad this season, has returned to training over the course of the week. Without any other major headaches, Lens, who defeated Marseille 1-0 last weekend, will travel to their near neighbours with expectations of three points.
Grenoble Foot38 vs. Toulouse
The performances of GF38 may be steadily improving, but that has helped their league position little. Mehmet Bazdarevic’s side remain rooted to the foot of the table with just three points, six marks shy of their nearest opponents and 11 back from safety.
Three draws in succession have certainly been promising, and the Iserois club were only seconds away from holding out to claim three points against Lorient last weekend. One of the goal scorers from that 2-2 draw, Jimmy Juan, will be suspended for this encounter. Pierre Boya, Josip Tadic and Sofiane Feghouli remain out due to injury problems. Laurent Courtois is suspended.
A 1-0 Europa League win over Partizan was achieved by Alain Casanova’s rotated Toulouse side on Thursday, and they will be looking to build on that success in Ligue 1 play. After a poor start to the campaign, last season’s fourth-placed outfit have climbed to tenth, though real consistency has been an issue. There have been no major changes on the injury front, with Mauro Cetto continuing to sit out.
Lille vs. Olympique Lyonnais
Coming back from a painful trip to Spain, in which they lost 3-1 to Valencia in the Europa League, Lille have the chance to quickly banish any unpleasant memories when they tackle Lyon on Sunday night. Having won twice at home against OL last season – in the league and in the Coupe de France – Rudi Garcia will be hoping to complete a famous hat-trick.
Nicolas Plestan and Stephane Dumont remain the big injury concerns for les Dogues, who showed their pedigree prior to the international break with a crushing 2-0 win over champions Bordeaux at home. A 4-0 win over local rivals Valenciennes last weekend was equally impressive. Franck Beria is banned.
If Lille have impressed of late, it’s fair to say that Lyon haven’t. Les Gones may have lost only once in their last five in all competitions, but they have yet to win in that same sequence. Jeremy Toulalan remains a big doubt for Claude Puel’s side, while Brazilian international Michel Bastos is suspended.
Robin Bairner, Goal.com
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