Lille vs St Etienne Predictions and Betting Tips
Lille and St Etienne square off at the Stade Pierre Mauroy for this Friday's solitary French Ligue 1 action. Read on for our expert tips and predictions.
Both sides, for the third consecutive time, had to settle for a share of the spoils when they clashed heads in the reverse fixture back in August. Would we see one of them take this encounter by the scruff of the neck?
Closely-contested encounter on the cards
Lille have since forgone their hopes of retaining their Ligue 1 title, however, they would surely be right up there if they've been in this kind of form since. In their most recent encounter, they swept aside 10-man Clermont Foot in what was a resounding 4-4 triumph. Having copped a total of 10 points from their last four league games, Lille is closing in on the European places with just four points separating them from Rennes who are in 4th place. Speaking of Europe, Lille does have an uphill battle next week as they welcome European champions to the Stade Pierre Mauroy looking to overturn a 2-0 deficit and no better way to warm up for that fixture than with another resounding victory.
St. Etienne's rise in recent weeks has been impressive as we've seen them go from being at the bottom of the table to a place above the relegation zone in a single month. Denis Bouanga's solitary strike against fellow strugglers Metz made sure of their 4th win in six league games, catapulting them out of the relegation zone for the first time since the beginning of the season. Pascal Dupraz, now getting the best out of his players since his appointment back in December, would surely be delighted, however, there's still a lot of points to play for and they're by no means safe with just one point being the difference between them and the dropzone.
Lille vs St Etienne Team News
Lille possible starting XI:
Jardim; Celik, Fonte, Botman, Gudmundsson; Andre, Xeka; Bamba, Ben Arfa, Sanches; David
Saint-Etienne possible starting lineup:
Bernardoni; Kolodziejczak, Nade, Mangala, Camara, Sacko; Nordin, Youssouf, Gourna-Douath, Boudebouz; Bouanga
Lille vs St Etienne Prediction: 2-1
With just one loss in their last six league matches, St Etienne have proved to be a tough side to get past. We expect them to give their opponents a good workout this Friday, however, we're backing Lille to take advantage of home advantage with a narrow victory.
