Nice vs Strasbourg prediction: FRANCE: Ligue 1 betting tips on match 2026-01-02 18:00.
[p]As Ligue 1 returns after the winter break, Nice will hope that a change in manager heralds an improvement in 2026, starting with this game against Strasbourg.[/p]
[p]Match News and Current Form[/p]
[p]Nice had lost nine consecutive games in all competitions, including six in the league, before squeezing past Ligue 2 outfit Saint-Étienne in the Coupe de France (2-1). Possessing the worst form of any side in Ligue 1 over a five-match period, that cup success was unsurprisingly not enough to prevent change, with Claude Puel returning for a second stint as the Eagles’ boss on Monday, replacing Franck Haise. The veteran coach’s task is to drag Nice out of a predicament which sees them sitting just five points above the relegation play-off spot, but four defeats from their last five home games (W1) certainly hint at their situation worsening here.[/p]
[p]Strasbourg are also searching for a win, as they are without a victory in four Ligue 1 games (D1, L3), losing ground in the race for Europe as a consequence. Four points worse off than the sides occupying fifth and sixth spots before this round of fixtures, this is the first time that Liam Rosenior’s men have really struggled to juggle their ambitions on numerous fronts, although ending 2025 four matches unbeaten in all competitions offers hope of regaining some stability (W3, D1). With two more clean sheets added to an impressive tally for the campaign (nine currently) during that sequence, they must now end a run of five winless away league encounters (D1, L4), albeit three of those defeats were suffered by just a one-goal margin.[/p]
[p]Head-to-Head History[/p]
[p]Nice are unbeaten in four H2Hs (W3, D1), having failed to win any of the five meetings immediately prior to that sequence (D2, L3)![/p]
[p]Hot Stats and Streaks[/p]
[p]Nice are yet to lose a home league game after scoring first this season (W4, D1).[/p]
[p]Pre-round, Nice’s home matches had produced the second-highest average of total corners in Ligue 1 this term (11.75).[/p]
[p]Six of Strasbourg’s seven league victories this season were accompanied by a clean sheet.[/p]
[p]Strasbourg are yet to win an away league game after conceding first this term (D1, L4).[/p]
[p]Key Players to Watch and Missing Players[/p]
[p]Strasbourg-born Nice defender Jonathan Clauss has registered six goal involvements (G1, A5) in nine career league meetings with his hometown club (W1, D5, L3). Julio Enciso has recorded three goal contributions in his last two games for Strasbourg (G2, A1), with four of his last five goals at club level scored before half-time.[/p]
[p]Despite both teams having a lengthy list of absentees, neither side appear to have suffered any fresh injuries.[/p]
[p]For all the latest team news, please check the Flashscore match centre.[/p]
[p]Betting Analysis[/p]
[p]Expecting the visitors to deny Nice an immediate “new-manager bounce” here, we recommend backing Strasbourg to win by one goal.[/p]
[p][i]Author: Ben Olawumi[/i][/p]