Lille vs Lorient prediction: FRANCE: Ligue 1 betting tips on match 2024-01-13 12:00.
Lille began 2024 with a unique yet record-breaking performance, as manager Paulo Fonseca deployed a full-strength team to take on Golden Lion in the Coupe de France, a club from a regional league in France’s sixth tier. The result was a 12-0 win for Lille, their largest victory in their history, which wasn’t very accommodating of them considering that the visitors travelled nearly 7000 kilometres from the Caribbean island of Martinique just to be there!
Perhaps the Mastiffs were overly aggressive having lost their last Ligue 1 match 2-1 to Strasbourg, which interrupted a prior 15-game unbeaten streak (W8, D7) across all competitions, a joint-second best run of undefeated games in the club’s history. Prior to that latest defeat, Lille had also drawn their previous two league matches, which has allowed those vying for a European spot to catch up to the home side.
Another side that has been trending in the wrong direction is Lorient, whose year got off to an awful start when losing 2-1 to third-tier side Sochaux in the Coupe de France. The away side also ended 2023 winless across their last eight league outings (D2, L6), a run that has seen them plummet to 17th in the table and they now begin this latest round four points from safety as a result.
This is the fourth time in Lorient’s last five top-flight seasons that they’ve reached the halfway point of the campaign in either the relegation zone or the relegation play-off spot. Beginning their road to recovery away to Lille will be tough, since the away side on the day has lost 13 of the previous 18 H2Hs (W5), although they ought to take confidence from their convincing 4-1 victory in the reverse H2H back in August.
Players to watch: Lille’s Edon Zhegrova will be brimming with confidence having netted a decisive double in this fixture last season, which kickstarted a run of scoring seven of his last eight goals at home. Lorient’s search for a timely league double could be led by captain Laurent Abergel, whose goal in the reverse fixture extended his winning run when scoring to seven matches.
Hot stat: Only four of Lille’s 17 league games this season have produced more than 2.5 goals.