As Ligue 1 returns this week we have one of the biggest games of the season for both Nice and Lens as two teams meet one another with hopes of achieving a spot in the European places for next campaign with the Allianz Riviera set to play out the first game in over a month for Nice.
The home side are heading into this game off the back of struggling time in their matches during the World Cup break, although they did manage to beat Standard Liege 4-1 in a friendly at the start of December.
Et vous, vous êtes plutôt 👍, 🤙 ou ✌️ avant la reprise de la @Ligue1UberEats ?🔜 #OGCNRCL#FierDEtreLensois pic.twitter.com/6ZdI8EmfX5— Racing Club de Lens (@RCLens) December 28, 2022
Et vous, vous êtes plutôt 👍, 🤙 ou ✌️ avant la reprise de la @Ligue1UberEats ?🔜 #OGCNRCL#FierDEtreLensois pic.twitter.com/6ZdI8EmfX5
A 3-0 loss to Atalanta would come soon after, as they registered just one shot on target throughout the fixture. However, they did draw 1-1 with Tottenham Hotspur shortly afterwards too, which was a fairly positive result given the standings of either team in their respective divisions.
On the other hand, Nice are currently sitting ninth in the table and their hopes of achieving a spot back in Europe for 2023/24 are looking quite slim as we approach the end of 2022.
Currently, there is an eight-point gap on fifth-placed Lorient to make up, and with them only achieving five wins so far in the league, the club are likely going to have to hope for Lorient to lose a few games in order to get back into the top five.
At the same time as winning only a third of their fixtures this season in Ligue 1, Nice are coming into this game against Lens with just 15 goals scored so far.
This means no side has netted fewer goals than them for those outside of the bottom four relegation spots in Ligue 1.
Lens, however, had a sensational time during the World Cup break as they continued to show their class. The club won all three of their friendlies during the World Cup break, as they even managed to defeat fellow Ligue 1 side, Montpellier, 2-1.
They then beat Ligue 2 outfit, Le Havre, 3-0 before a 2-1 win over Reims. At the same time as this fantastic run, Lens have won 11 times in the league and lost only one game.
Despite the excellent form, Lens still have to deal with the sensational unbeaten run of form from Paris Saint-Germain at the top of the table.
Forebet predicts a win here for Lens and for the game to see under 2.5 goals.