Lille vs Monaco

Stade Pierre-Mauroy is the venue as Lille and Moanco go head-to-head in a tasty-looking Ligue 1 encounter.

After going winless in five of their last six Ligue 1 outings (D2, L3), Lille are left with nothing but pride to play for here, as they are no longer within touching distance of the European qualification places. Condemned to an abysmal mid-table finish, ‘Les Dogues’ will look to save some dignity by hindering Monaco’s bid to qualify for next season’s Champions League, having gone unbeaten in their last three top-flight H2Hs (D2, L1). Jocelyn Gourvennec’s men eked out a 1-0 triumph over Strasbourg in their most recent home league match, ending a run of three Ligue 1 fixtures at the Stade Pierre-Mauroy (D2, L1). But even though only PSG have suffered fewer Ligue 1 home defeats than Lille this season (3), they are only the 10th-best hosts in France’s top-flight this season.

As for Monaco, a comfortable 2-0 home victory over Angers last time out has extended their winning Ligue 1 streak to seven matches, bringing them to the cusp of a second successive top-three finish. ‘Les Monégasques’ are currently level on points with third-placed Rennes but have the momentum firmly on their side. Despite failing to keep a clean sheet in any of their four previous away league games, Philippe Clement’s men have won the last three in a row, averaging three goals per match. Enjoying their second-best winning Ligue 1 run since 2016/17, Monaco will be keen to avenge a 2-1 defeat in this exact fixture last season, having won their three previous visits to the Stade Pierre-Mauroy beforehand. Moreover, they’ve only lost one of their last eight Ligue 1 visits to reigning French champions (W2, D5).