Preview: Nantes vs. Strasbourg – prediction, team news, lineups

Strasbourg travel to Nantes in Ligue 1 this weekend as they continue to hunt down Lyon in the fight for European football next season.

The visitors are currently seventh in the standings, just two points behind OL, who currently occupy the final European position.

Match preview

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Liam Rosenior‘s side are in good form heading into this fixture, having only lost twice in their last 14 matches in all competitions.

They secured an impressive 1-0 win away to Auxerre last time out, becoming only the second side in the division to claim three points from a visit to Stade de l’Abbe-Deschamps this season.

It was also only their fourth away win of the campaign, something that they will be looking to improve upon once again this weekend against Nantes.

The win against Auxerre last weekend also meant that Strasbourg secured their fourth clean sheet in a row in the division, demonstrating a recent improvement, given they have only kept seven clean sheets in Ligue 1 all season.

Strengthening in defence was clearly a priority for the club, with the likes of Andrew Omobamidele and Valentin Barco arriving at the club on loan during the winter transfer window, and recent results are evidence that they have improved at the back.

As well as getting better at the back, the visitors have a pretty good record in front of goal this season, having netted 38 times in 24 matches, making them the seventh-best attacking team in the division.

Rosenior’s side are getting hot at a good time, and if they could have a repeat of their 3-1 triumph over Nantes back in October this weekend, it would keep the pressure on the teams above them to carry on winning.

A brace from Andrey Santos and another goal from Dilane Bakwa helped secure the three points that day, despite Herba Guirassy‘s late consolation strike preventing another clean sheet for goalkeeper Djordje Petrovic.

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Meanwhile, Nantes face another tricky opponent this weekend, having lost 2-0 away to Marseille last time out in Ligue 1.

With Marseille currently second in the league, it was not a fixture that they were expected to gain anything from, but they held out for 73 minutes before a quickfire double from Amine Gouiri and Mason Greenwood eventually broke their resistance.

That defeat left Antoine Kombouare‘s side dangerously close to the drop zone in Ligue 1, as they sit just four points above Le Havre, who are two places below them in 16th.

With difficult fixtures in the coming weeks, including this match, as well as a game against Lille, the table could look a lot different when Nantes hit the road to face Le Havre on March 30.

Nantes will be looking to improve upon their home record this season, as currently, only four sides have performed worse in front of their own fans in the division.

The hosts will be searching for only their fourth home victory of the season, having won three, drawn four and lost four of their 11 home fixtures to date.

However, they did win their last home fixture in Ligue 1, as they beat Lens 3-1 on February 23, and they will be hoping for another victory this weekend as they continue to battle against the drop.

Team News

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In a blow for the hosts, Fabien Centonze is expected to miss out with a knee injury that has ruled him out for the past two matches.

Nicolas Cozza is back from suspension for Nantes, while Kelvin Amian is banned for this fixture due to an accumulation of bookings throughout the season.

Elsewhere, Nathan Zeze (ankle) and Adel Mahamoud (ACL) are out for this clash, while Francis Coquelin (calf) and Tino Kadewere remain doubts for Les Canaris.

Meanwhile, Strasbourg’s Loubadhe Abakar Sylla is out of this game after he was sent off in the closing stages of last weekend’s win at Auxerre.

Bakwa, who scored against Nantes in the reverse fixture, is also suspended for this match due to an accumulation of yellow cards.

In further bad news for the visitors, Thomas Delaine is still nursing a knee injury, and he is not expected to feature, while Alaa Bellaarouch (groin) and Moise Sahi Dion (Achilles) remain long-term absentees.

Habib Diarra is a doubt for this clash, as he went off during the win against Auxerre last weekend, and January recruit Omobamidele is out until the end of the month with an Achilles problem.

Nantes possible starting lineup:
Lopes; Cozza, Pallois, Castelletto, Sow, Coco; Lepenant, Leroux, Chirivella, Simon; Abline

Strasbourg possible starting lineup:
Petrovic; Barco, Doukoure, Sarr, Doue; Lemarechal, Santos, Nanasi, Moreira; Emegha, Mara

We say: Nantes 0-1 Strasbourg

Strasbourg have found ways to win in recent weeks, and although Nantes need the points, we think that the visitors will just about edge this one.

With games against Toulouse and Lyon in the coming weeks, Rosenior’s side will want to take all three points before they play two sides that are closer to them in the table, and we expect them to do just that this weekend.

For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.

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