Reims – Lorient : Preview & Prediction
Next Saturday’s Ligue 1 action kicks off at the Stade Auguste-Delaune, where sixth-placed Reims will be looking to get back on track after a couple of winless league games (E1, P1). Despite their wobble, Will Still’s men finished the previous matchday in that sixth place, their best position after nine rounds of a top flight season since 1976/77! It’s a remarkable record for one of Europe’s most diverse teams, who had players of ten different nationalities in their previous starting line-up at home.
Returning to their home stadium could be an advantage for Reims, who have alternated between wins and losses there so far this season (G2, P2) in a pattern that continued recently with a 3-1 loss to Monaco. It would be a surprise if Reims were to lose again this time around, as they have not suffered back-to-back home league defeats in over a year, and in their last three losses in this tournament they bounced back with a clean sheet in their next Ligue 1 home game.
Lorient will travel to Reims in high spirits after a 2-1 win over Breton rivals Rennes to end an unwanted five-game winless streak (G1, E2, P3). As a result, Lorient are now unbeaten in each of their last seven Ligue 1 matches in which they have led at halftime (G6, E1), a run that began after a 4-2 loss in February to none other than Reims.
That away defeat is part of a rather humiliating run of form that has seen Lorient win just once in their last 14 away games in Ligue 1 (E5, P8). In each of the last three matches during that sequence, they conceded at least three times despite scoring first inside the opening 20 minutes, and exactly three times in total in each of their last two away league games (E 3-3 at Lyon and P 5- 3 at Nantes).
Players to watch: Four of the five goals scored by Reims’ Amir Richardson proved to be his team’s first goal in club level matches, although he was not on the winning side in any of his last three scoring appearances (E2, P1). Trying to stop him will be plucky Lorient defender Isaak Toure, the man who scored his side’s winner in the Breton derby to end their miserable run.
Key stat: Reims are one of only two teams in Ligue 1, along with Lille, to have scored in every Ligue 1 game this season.
Reims – Lorient : Betting Tips
Reims – Win Odds: 1.55
