Lille will look to extend their unbeaten start to the Ligue 1 season

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Lille will look to extend their unbeaten start to the Ligue 1 season to five matches when they welcome Nantes to the Stade Pierre-Mauroy on Friday evening. The hosts played out a 1-1 draw with Marseille in their last outing, while Nantes ended Saint-Etienne’s winning run as they shared the spoils with the table toppers in gameweek four.

Unbeaten in their opening four Ligue 1 (L1) fixtures (W2, D2), Lille are currently enjoying their best start to a new league campaign since 2014/15. A 1-1 draw at Marseille in their last league outing continued a recent trend too, as each of their previous six L1 games have now seen Lille score first and end with under 2.5 match goals (W4, D2).

Usually strong from the off at home, the hosts won each of the 11 L1 home fixtures to see them take a HT lead last campaign, although they have drawn the only game in which they led at HT here this season. Encouragingly, ‘Le LOSC’ have won the four most recent L1 H2Hs held here, scoring the opener within 20 minutes on three occasions.

Nantes enter this game having won just one of their last six league fixtures (W1, D2, L3), with each of the four games won/lost also seeing the victorious side on the day score first. A quick start could be on the cards as well, considering the opener has been scored within 15 minutes in Nantes’ last three top-flight fixtures.

Strong at the back last term, ‘Les Canaris’ shut out the opposition before the break in 71.43% of their L1 away games last term (HT: W4, D8, L2). However they have done that in just one of their two away matches this season (HT: D1, L1)

Lille won six and lost one of their last seven games of the curtailed 2019-20 campaign – with that one solitary defeat coming at the hands of Marseille – so Christophe Galtier’s side would have no doubt been looking to avenge that loss when they travelled to the Orange Velodrome last weekend.

Date: 25/092020
Time: 22:00
Venue: Stade Pierre-Mauroy (Villeneuve d’Ascq)
Pick for the match:
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