Strasbourg vs Le Havre prediction: FRANCE: Ligue 1 betting tips on match 2023-12-09 14:00.
Although Strasbourg picked up a commendable point with an 80th-minute equaliser away at European-chasing Brest on Thursday evening, it is now no wins in eight games (D4, L4) for Patrick Vieira’s mid-table side. All four of those draws have come in the last five matches but Le Racing desperately need a victory to put some distance between themselves and Lorient in 16th – the relegation play-off position.
To do so, they’ll have to do something they haven’t done since August, and that’s win at the Stade de la Meinau, with the White and Blues scoring only four goals across those fixtures. And with just 12 netted across their entire Ligue 1 season – the second-worst return in the division ahead of the round – it is clear what Vieira’s team need to work on if they are to start turning those draws into crucial victories.
Making the 700km trip east, Le Havre who have also netted just 12 league goals all season, though it’s arguably a more pressing issue for them given they’ve drawn a blank in seven of their last eight matches (W1, D4, L3). The Dean Club, who are two points above their opponents, failed to score for the third successive game last Sunday, despite playing against ten men for 80 minutes, as they went down 2-0 at home to top-of-the-table PSG.
Their record against Strasbourg likely won’t give their fans a great deal of encouragement either, with defeats and no goals scored from their last two meetings. Misery has been a common theme for Le Havre in these parts given they haven’t returned home from the Stade de la Meinau with three points this century (D3, L2) and you have to go back to 1994 to find the last time they scored more than one goal in the fixture.
Key battle: Strasbourg striker Emanuel Emegha is targeting his third goal in four matches with both of his recent strikes coming in 1-1 draws, but in his way will be Le Havre keeper Arthur Desmas who has kept clean sheets in four of his last six appearances.
Hot stat: Strasbourg scored a first-half home goal for the first time this season in their last home fixture.