Lille hold a valuable three-point lead over 2nd placed PSG at the top of the French Ligue 1 and the hosts know that another three points in Sunday’s clash against Saint-Etienne would move them a step closer to realising their title ambitions.
Lille OSC have now won five of their last six matches overall in the French top flight and return to their Stade Pierre-Mauroy this Sunday on the back of recent and vital victories over PSG, Metz, Lyon, Nice and Lens and just one more win could seal the title for Christophe Galtier’s side.
Satisfaction 🔝 @itsJoDavid #RCLLOSC pic.twitter.com/8KcxbLFxmU— LOSC Lille EN (@LOSC_EN) May 10, 2021
Satisfaction 🔝 @itsJoDavid #RCLLOSC pic.twitter.com/8KcxbLFxmU
The hosts have lost just three league matches to date throughout this successful campaign, two of which have been at home, but 10 wins and 6 draws have helped maintain Lille’s stranglehold at the summit of the domestic top flight.
The two defeats were to Angers and Nimes but Lille have performed on a consistent basis at home with their success underpinned by a solid defensive unit which has kept a total of nine clean sheets so far this season.
Saint-Etienne now sit in a mid-table position of 11th in Ligue 1 following recent back-to-back wins over Montpellier and Marseille and indeed, the visitors have won four of their last six matches overall to steer themselves clear of any relegation danger.
However, Saint-Etienne’s results in this season’s Ligue 1 campaign have been littered with defeats, having lost 15 of their 36 matches to date this term and this has prevented the visitors from making a serious challenge for a top five finish.
Saint-Etienne have made improvements on their travels though in recent times as the second half of the season has been in stark contrast to the opening half, particularly on the road.
The visitors had managed to pick up just two wins out of their first 11 matches away from home but they’ve subsequently been able to pick themselves up by winning five of their last seven games on the road.
Four of these five victories away from their Stade Geoffroy-Guichard have also seen the visitors keep clean sheets.
So, this will serve as a timely boost for Saint-Etienne when they make their way to face the current Ligue 1 leaders this Sunday.
Lille are unbeaten in their last four meetings against Saint-Etienne though, winning three of these encounters, and the host’s desire should be stronger than their visitors here.