Auxerre vs Lorient prediction: FRANCE: Ligue 1 betting tips on match 2025-08-16 15:15.
[p]After a solid first season back in Ligue 1, Auxerre will be hoping to avoid any ‘second season syndrome’ when they welcome newly-promoted Lorient on the opening weekend of the 2025/26 season.[/p]
[p]Match News and Current Form[/p]
[p]Auxerre reacquainted themselves brilliantly with top-flight football last season, finishing 11th and closer in terms of points to the top half than the relegation zone. Building on that looks tricky, as while they’ve had a productive summer in the transfer market, they’ve also lost last term’s joint-top league scorer Gaëtan Perrin and key defender Jubal to Krasnodar. The loss of Perrin in particular has been keenly felt in pre-season, with Auxerre failing to score in any of their last three friendlies, so improvements are needed up front if they’re to make a quick start to the campaign.[/p]
[p]Lorient followed in Auxerre’s footsteps as they clinched the Ligue 2 title last season, ensuring they returned to the top-flight at the first time of asking. Including Sunday’s opponents, the last eight teams to win Ligue 2 survived in Ligue 1 the following season, so the omens appear positive for Olivier Pantaloni’s men. A quiet summer has seen Lorient spend less than £2 million across five signings, none of whom were playing in one of Europe’s top-five leagues last term, so making the step up could be a challenge.[/p]
[p]Head-to-Head History[/p]
[p]Auxerre have dominated this fixture in Ligue 1, losing just two of the 18 top-flight H2Hs (W8, D8). Lorient have avoided defeat on their last three such trips to Auxerre though (W1, D2), winning 3-1 in the most recent meeting on this ground in September 2022.[/p]
[p]Hot Stats and Streaks[/p]
[p]Auxerre’s last six Ligue 1 wins have been accompanied by a clean sheet.[/p]
[p]Auxerre dropped more points after scoring first than any other side in Ligue 1 last term (23).[/p]
[p]Lorient were ahead at the break in just four of their away league games last season (HT: D7, L6).[/p]
[p]Lorient are unbeaten across their last four opening fixtures in Ligue 1 (W2, D2).[/p]
[p]Key Players to Watch and Missing Players[/p]
[p]New Auxerre signing Josué Casimir directly contributed to ten Ligue 1 goals for Le Havre last season (G4, A6), with the last three of those strikes coming in games that produced 5+ total match goals. Sambou Soumano’s ten goals as a substitute in Ligue 2 for Lorient last season were the most scored by any player across France’s top two divisions in the 21st century – eight of his 14 strikes for the campaign came after the 80th minute.[/p]
[p]Neither side have any major injury concerns ahead of the season opener.[/p]
[p]Betting Analysis[/p]
[p]The bulk of Auxerre’s points last season were earned on home soil, so the sensible option appears to be backing a home win.[/p]
[p][i]Author: Ben Olawumi[/i][/p]