Lens vs Monaco

Lens and Monaco are set to square off in an exciting Coupe de France last-16 tie at the Stade Bollaert-Delelis.

Lens’ Coupe de France journey started with a narrow 1-0 victory over lower-league side Stade Poitevin, setting the tone for a dramatic success over Lille following a nerve-shredding penalty shoot-out last time out. However, Lens’ run of two successive Ligue 1 wins suffered a setback on the eve of January’s international break as they succumbed to a 2-0 home loss to Olympique Marseille. ‘Les Sang et or’ now face the prospect of losing back-to-back competitive matches for the first time this season, a feat they last experienced in May 2021. So Monaco’s arrival at the Stade Bollaert-Delelis comes at an opportune moment for Lens, who are unbeaten in their last three league H2Hs (W2, D1), keeping a clean sheet on each occasion, including a 2-0 triumph in Ligue 1 action earlier this season.

In the meantime, new boss Philippe Clement has endured an underwhelming start to his managerial reign at Monaco, delivering a mixed bag of performances in his first three Ligue 1 games in charge (W1, D1, L1). ‘Les Monégasques’ have at least been fun to watch, with both of their last two league outings featuring over 3.5 total goals, including an action-packed 3-2 defeat at the hands of Montpellier on the stroke of the international window. That’s particularly worrying because they are now winless in four of their last six competitive away fixtures (D2, L2), with both wins in that sequence coming in the Coupe de France against lower-league opponents. When it comes to their trips to fellow Ligue 1 rivals, Monaco have failed to get on the scoresheet in two of their last three such contests (D1, L2).