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| PSG’s incredible start to the season has seen them drop to a minuscule 1/25 to claim the Ligue 1 title |
Another week of the year may have passed but it seems like we are living out a scene from ‘Groundhog Day’ each and every week with PSG continually bossing proceedings. The Parisians were again in the goals this past gameweek as they trounced Metz 5-1. Their lopsided victory has seen them move onto 19 goals for the season. PSG’s incredible strike rate of almost four goals per match has seen them drop to a minuscule 1/25 to claim the Ligue 1 title. And one would be crazy to bet against them achieving this, as they really do look capable of registering an unbeaten season this term. Anyway, that’s enough lauding over the champions elect, let’s move onto this week’s preview.
Friday 15 September
37/20 Toulouse | Draw 22/10 | Bordeaux 15/10 (20:45)
Toulouse and Bordeaux get proceedings underway this week. The hosts come into this one off the back of a disappointing draw away to Troyes and will be desperate to atone for it, while Bordeaux will be far less disappointed with their 0-0 draw with Lille. Despite being involved in low-scoring affairs last week, both of these sides have been in the goals this term. As such, I quite fancy the Both Teams to Score – Yes – market at a solid 8/10.
Saturday 16 September
1/6 Monaco | 13/2 | Strasbourg 13/1 (17:00)
Monaco will be looking to make short work of Strasbourg when the two sides lock horns in Saturday’s opener. The hosts come into this one off the back of a surprise drubbing at the hands of an out of form Nice. This was Monaco’s first loss of the campaign and they will be desperate to bounce back from it with immediate effect. Strasbourg also come into this one off the back of a loss, as they went down 1-0 to Amiens on their own patch. Yes, Monaco were poor last week but they should have no problems bouncing back against the new boys. Get on the home win with confidence!
19/20 Nantes | 23/20 | Caen 3/1 (20:00)
Nantes and Caen will collide in a top eight affair this Saturday. Both of these sides come into this one off the back of solid results, with Nantes beating Montpellier 1-0 away from home and Caen beating Dijon 2-1. I’m going to avoid the straight win market here as I honestly cannot separate the sides. Instead, I’m going to back the Total – Under 2.5 – Goals market as both teams have been rigid at the back.
12/10 Guingamp | 9/4 | Lille 47/20 (20:00)
Guingamp will be looking to bounce back from their 2-1 defeat to Lyon when they take on a Lille outfit who drew 1-1 with Bordeaux in their last fixture. Lille haven’t been great away from home but their newfound defensive solidarity scares me. As such, I’m avoiding the outright winner market and I’m going to go for the Totals – Under 2.5 – Goals market at a handy enough 7/10.
16/10 Troyes | 22/10 | Montpellier 7/4 (20:00)
Montpellier make the trip to Troyes this week off the back of a somewhat surprising defeat away to Nantes. They could be in for another testing assignment here, as Troyes have proven to be a rather tricky side to break down. I’m on the away side here. Yes, they were pretty poor last week but I think that loss to Dijon will light the fires inside them. Get on at a handy 7/4!
2/1 Dijon | 43/20 | St. Etienne 14/10 (20:00)
Dijon will be looking to make up for a rather shoddy display in their 2-1 defeat to Caen when they play host to a high-flying St. Etienne, who make the trip having drawn 1-1 with Angers. There’s a reason St. Etienne currently occupy a place in the top four and I think they will illustrate that here – get on the away win at 14/10.
Sunday 17 September
29/20 Amiens | 24/10 | Marseille 19/20 (15:00)
We kick Sunday’s action off with a tie between 13th-placed Amiens and tenth-placed Marseille. Both sides come into this one having only won two games this term but Marseille have a much healthier win record, as they have drawn two of their other three fixtures, while Amiens have lost all three. I have a feeling that Amiens will take this one at home. Marseille looked horrific during their 3-1 defeat at Stade Rennes and I suspect that loss may have done some psychological damage to the side. As such, I will be having a small strike on the home win here.
5/10 Angers | 31/10 | Metz 6/1 (17:00)
I’m going to keep this short and sweet so as to give you enough time to get on the Angers win before the price shortens. Simply put, Metz have been horrific this year and their poor form shows no signs of recovering based on last week’s evidence, as they were hammered 5-1 by PSG. And while Angers have been the draw specialists this year – they’ve drawn four of their five games – I can only see this ending with the hosts having bagged three points. Get on the home win with confidence.
14/10 Rennes | 9/4 | Nice 2/1 (17:00)
Well, well, well, maybe there is still some life left in Nice after all. The visitors for this weekend’s fixture were in fine fettle as they hammered defending champions Monaco 4-0. The result saw them move out of the bottom four for the first time in what seems like ages. Rennes also enjoyed a productive gameweek as they beat Marseille 3-1. I said it earlier in the season and got my fingers burnt, but this time I’m confident Nice have turned things around. As such, I can’t help but have a strike on the away win at an extremely kind 2/1.
1/6 PSG | 13/2 | Lyon 25/2 (21:00)
We close out the gameweek with the pick of the round’s action, which sees PSG play host to Lyon. As I mentioned in the intro, the Parisians have been in fine form this term, bagging goals for fun, while only letting in three. And while Lyon have been solid – they are yet to lose a game this term – they are yet to take on a side half as good as this PSG one. The hosts are likely to be tested a bit more this week but I still can’t see them dropping any points. The 1/6 on offer for the PSG win is not that great a value but it’s my banker bet for the weekend.
QUAD @ 5/1
Nice Win 2/1
Angers Win 5/10
Monaco Win 1/6
PSG Win 1/6
Written by Darry Worthington
