Bordeaux’s future is in their hands. Win or draw against Annecy on Friday night, and Bordeaux will remain in second place in Ligue 2.
A loss away to Annecy on Friday night would open the door for third-place Metz to climb through. Metz are three points behind Bordeaux but have a superior goal difference. The final two matchdays in Ligue 2 will dictate which team finishes second and which remains in the second division.
📽 Retrouvez le résumé de la belle victoire bordelaise contre Laval en @Ligue2BKT ! 🔵⚪ pic.twitter.com/bfcRdSXCQB— FC Girondins de Bordeaux (@girondins) May 23, 2023
📽 Retrouvez le résumé de la belle victoire bordelaise contre Laval en @Ligue2BKT ! 🔵⚪ pic.twitter.com/bfcRdSXCQB
No playoffs will be held between the third-place finisher and the third-from-bottom team in Ligue 1. The French top flight will be reduced to 18 teams for next season to improve the quality of competitions.
Annecy are 15th in the Ligue 1 standings ahead of matchday No 37. Like the top flight, Ligue 2 will relegate four teams this season. Annecy are just one point clear of the relegation zone. Seventeenth-place Pau could move above Annecy on Friday night.
Bordeaux won 1-0 at home against Annecy in the reverse fixture. Dilane Bakwa scored the game’s only goal in the 22nd minute. Five yellow cards were handed out in the match.
Girondins are playing well. They kept eight clean sheets in their last nine Ligue 2 games. Girondins are unbeaten in 12 of their last 13 fixtures in the division. Bordeaux are coming off a 3-0 win over Laval last time out.
Bordeaux are the third-best away team in Ligue 2 after 18 matches. The team took 29 points, scoring 23 goals and conceding 17 times.
Annecy, on the other hand, are on a run of poor form. They took just six points from the last six matches, scoring six goals and conceding 11 times.
The good news for Annecy is they are unbeaten in four straight games. Three of those matches ended as draws. Le Rouge have a home record of 8W-4D-6L.
Girondins manager David Guion has just one player on the injury list. Issouf Sissokho is a doubt to play due to a “dead leg”. Forward Josh Maja leads the team in goals with 16. Maja should start in attack.
Annecy’s Clement Billemaz and Romain Spano are both nursing knee injuries. Neither player should be fit to play. Moise Sahi Dion has 15 goals for Le Rouge this season.
Bordeaux are playing some great football and should post a win on Friday night. Girondins could achieve promotion back to Ligue 1 with a win and Metz draw or loss. Bordeaux should win 2-0 and take a step closer to Ligue 1.