Lille OSC vs AC Arles Avignon- French Ligue 1 Preview
Lille OSC will host the bottom placed AC Arles-Avignon in an all important game on Saturday, April 30, at the Stadium Lille Metropole. The game holds vital importance for Rudi Garcia’s side, who could find themselves on top of the table at the end of the
game. Arles-Avignon, on the other hand, are certain to be relegated with only one win throughout the campaign
Lille OSC
The Mastiffs are currently second in the League table with 60 points, just one point adrift of the league leaders Olympique Marseille. Lille would certainly be going all out against a depleted Lions outfit and three points here would see them through to
the top of Ligue 1. Lille have been strong performers at home as they have notched up 10 wins as compared to the six away victories.
The Mastiffs have only lost once while playing at home and would love to keep that record intact when they take the field against the Lions. While playing at home, Lille’s scoring record has been very impressive as they have scored 31 times, compared to
the 15 they have conceded. In their last five games, Lille have underperformed as they have managed just two wins to go along with the two draws. The loss, which came as a surprise to many, was against AS Monaco.
AC Arles-Avignon
The Lions are rooted at the bottom of the table with just 14 points from 32 games and are certain to be relegated. With six games remaining in the season, there seems no way back for Faruk Hadzibegic’s side but they would like to end their disappointing
campaign on a high.
Arles-Avignon have been pathetic throughout the season as they could only achieve one win from 32 matches. Of the 20 losses, 11 have been away from home while there are no wins to take note of. Avignon have conceded 31 goals so far while playing away from
home and only 4 goals have been scored by the Lions themselves. In their last five games, Lions have slumped to three defeats while the other two games failed to produce any winners.
Team News
http://www.senore.com/Football-soccer/Lille-OSC-c39800
Garcia is highly likely to field a 4-2-3-1 formation. Tulio de Melo will be starting upfront for the hosts while http://www.senore.com/Football-soccer/Pierre-Alain-Frau-c30011 will play behind de Melo as a second striker. Mickael Landreau will be guarding Lille’s net.
AC Arles-Avignon
The Lions are expected to go in with the famous 4-4-2 formation. Yann Kermorgant and Franck Dja Djedje would start upfront for Avignon. Cyrille Merville is all set to guard the Lions net.
Players to watch
Midfielder http://www.senore.com/Football-soccer/Eden-Hazard-c11863 will play a key role in Lille’s midfield and the Mastiffs would hope that the Belgian could perform up to his maximum potential in order to secure the top spot in the table.
Avignon hopes will be pinned upon the pace and striking abilities of Franck Dja Djedje who is the Lions top goal scorer on away turfs with two goals.
Prediction
With relegation guaranteed for Arles-Avignon this season, it looks highly unlikely that the Lions would come even close to the Mastiffs. Lille are expected to win by a 3-0 margin.
Tags: