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Ligue 1: Lens vs. Monaco – Sunday’s match between Lens and Monaco at the Stade Bollaert-Delelis is a crucial one in the battle for European slots at the top of the Ligue 1 standings.
With the visitors down to fifth place and the hosts right behind them barely outside the top five, the two teams are currently separated by just two points.
After finishing their continental campaign in the middle of the week, Lens will be back in action on Sunday with the goal of maintaining their strong Ligue 1 form and placing among the top five in order to qualify for the European stage once more the following season.
Despite suffering major setbacks to their hopes of finishing in the top five after losing 2-0 to Nice and Paris Saint-Germain back-to-back before the new year, Les Sang et Or have recovered spectacularly to now sit sixth in the top flight of France with 36 points from their first 22 games.
With a 2-0 victory over Toulouse on the road to start the season, Franck Haise’s team is now unbeaten in four league games. They then made it three straight wins by defeating Nantes and Strasbourg 1-0 and 3-1, respectively, to get back within striking distance of the continental spots.
Les Sang et Or faced a difficult trip to Reims in their most recent Ligue 1 match last weekend. Although they were unable to extend the winning run, they managed to maintain an unbeaten streak with a commendable 1-1 draw thanks to Wesley Said’s equaliser.
On Thursday, they travelled to take on German team Freiburg in the second leg of their Europa League playoff tie, where they were eliminated after a 3-2 loss after extra time, having initially led 2-0 through David Costa and Elye Wahi.
Now that they are totally focused on their league goals and have closed the gap with the visiting team in fifth place to just two points, Lens will look to bounce back quickly from their setback and reclaim a European position ahead of the final stretch on Sunday.
They take on a Monaco team that is hoping to improve on their previous rough play and widen the gap between the two teams in their own campaign to qualify for the continental tournament this year.
Les Rouge et Blanc, who finished sixth in the previous tournament and are looking to improve to a top-four finish, had a strong start to the season, amassing 33 points from their first 17 games to put themselves in the lead with 10 wins and just 4 losses at the beginning of the year.
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They have only managed one more win and five points from their last five league games, losing 3-1 at home to Reims before playing to draws with Marseille and Le Havre. Since the beginning of January, however, they have been unable to continue that run and are currently experiencing a dip in their play.
Adi Hutter’s team managed to secure a 3-2 victory over the highly-regarded Nice team, with a brace from Denis Zakaria and a game-winning goal from Aleksandr Golovin 13 minutes from time.
However, their momentum was dashed again the following weekend when they hosted Toulouse and lost 2-1 despite drawing level through Maghnes Akliouche early in the match.
Due to their difficulties, Monaco has now fallen behind Brest and Lille into fifth place. With only a two-point advantage over the chasing group led by their hosts, Monaco will be eager to recover on Sunday and secure a vital victory to solidify their position at the top of the division before the final 11 games.
Lens Ligue 1 form:
L L W W W D
Lens form (all competitions):
W W W D D L
Monaco Ligue 1 form:
W L D D W L
Monaco form (all competitions):
W D D L W L
Deiver Machado, the defender, will not play for Lens on Sunday. However, Kevin Danso, who was suspended against Freiburg the previous game, will be available to play and will likely line up alongside Abdukodir Khusanov and Facundo Medina in a back three.
Andy Diouf and Nampalys Mendy are vying for starting positions in midfield, but Neil El Aynaoui and Salis Abdul Samed should once again get the go-ahead to start, with David Costa continuing to play a more advanced role in support of a front two following his goal against Freiburg on Thursday.
Wesley Said, who has five goals in 16 Ligue 1 appearances this season, will try to score early on after Florian Sotoca and Elye Wahi led the line in that encounter and the latter also found the net.
Along with strikers Krepin Diatta and Breel Embolo, defenders Caio Henrique and Vanderson are still sidelined in the treatment room for Monaco, which is still dealing with a number of injury concerns.
However, they will be bolstered by the return of captain Wissam Ben Yedder to the attack after he missed the Toulouse match due to suspension.
Having scored 15 goals in all competitions this season, including 11 in 20 Ligue 1 games, he is expected to replace Folarin Balogun and lead the line from the beginning.
Youssouf Fofana, Denis Zakaria, and Mohamed Camara will undoubtedly start in an unchanged midfield trio, while Aleksandr Golovin, who has been out of action due to suspension, may also make his comeback and rejoin Ben Yedder and Takumi Minamino in a front three.
Lens possible starting lineup:
Samba; Khusanov, Danso, Medina; Frankowski, Abdul Samed, El Aynaoui, Chavez; Costa; Wahi, Said
Monaco possible starting lineup:
Kohn; Kehrer, Maripan, Salisu, Jakobs; Fofana, Zakaria, Camara; Minamino, Ben Yedder, Golovin
Our prediction for this match 0-0 or 1-1 draw
