A number of Ligue 1’s big guns enjoyed midweek wins from PSG to Lyon to Monaco and the action in France’s top flight continues with another busy weekend schedule.
Mauricio Pochettino’s men overcame ten-man Metz 2-1 on Wednesday to extend their perfect start to seven wins from seven games and open up a seven-point lead at the top of the standings.
Obviously a title is not in September but the Parisians’ early advantage has put pressure on the rest going into the weekend’s fixtures.
Nice Can Get Back on Track
Manager Christophe Galtier must have felt smug after his Nice side started the season with three wins in four matches, having raised eyebrows with his move from champions Lille over the summer, but his team have had a bit of a reality check recently.
The club from the Cote d’Azur drew a frenetic contest with Monaco 2-2 last weekend, missing a late penalty which could have won the game and spurning crucial points against a rival.
And that was followed by a 1-0 defeat to Lorient, who went down to ten men after 69 minutes, in midweek.
Punters may therefore be wary about backing Nice to beat this week’s opponents St-Etienne but at 5/4 they are worth chancing.
Second-bottom St-Etienne are winless from their opening seven league games this season, having lost each of their last four assignments, and they will not be aided by the absence of Etienne Green, who is suspended.
Marseille Unbeaten Run Can Continue
Jorge Sampaoli’s Marseille are quickly emerging as Paris Saint-Germain’s closest challengers for the Ligue 1 title this season, having already seen off Montpellier, St-Etienne, Monaco and Rennes.
Their other matches with Bordeaux and Angers ended in stalemates and they are a decent bet at 4/5 to continue their unbeaten streak with victory over Lens at the weekend.
Arkadiusz Milik remains sidelined for Marseille but Cheikh Bamba Dieng has been doing a good job in the final third.
Lens are currently in the mix for a top-four spot but suffered a setback with a 1-0 loss to Strasbourg on Wednesday and lost defender Kevin Danso to a red card in the process. They should be opposed.
Resurgent Nantes Worth Chancing
Nantes won only nine matches across the entirety of the 2020-21 Ligue 1 season but have already hit a third of that tally this term.
Antoine Kombouare’s men have looked sharp with big wins over Angers (4-1) and Brest (3-1) recently with playmaker Ludovic Blas having looked particularly effective with three goals across those assignments. And they look worth taking a chance on at 37/20 when they visit Reims this weekend.
Reims have made a slow but not terrible start to the season with one win, four draws and two defeats from seven games.
The loss of reliable forward Boulaye Dia to Villarreal this summer is noticeable with the team struggling to convert stalemates into victories and their lack of a cutting edge could once again cost them.
*All odds correct at time of writing.