Lille vs Bordeaux

Lille will be keen to tighten the noose on the Ligue 1 top five when they lock horns with dead-last Bordeaux at the Stade Pierre-Mauroy.

A 1-0 win away to mid-table Nantes last time out made it six Ligue 1 clean sheets in a row for Lille (W4, D2), reigniting their bid to secure European qualification. Despite their impressive run of form, ‘Les Dogues’ have earned a reputation as the ‘entertainment killers’ as five of their last six league matches have featured under 1.5 total goals. Manager Jocelyn Gourvennec would not mind another narrow win as long as it brings Lille closer to their seasonal goal. There’s plenty of reason for optimism in the home camp ahead of this match-up, as ‘Les Dogues’ have won their last five Ligue 1 meetings with Bordeaux, netting 3+ goals on three occasions, including a ‘goal-friendly’ 3-2 triumph in the reverse fixture back in December.

In the meantime, Bordeaux’s hopes of maintaining their long-standing top-flight status are running thin after a run of three successive league defeats ‘to nil’ condemned them to the foot table. But with 18th-placed Saint-Etienne only five points away, ‘Les Girondins’ still have high hopes for saving a thoroughly underwhelming season via relegation play-offs at the very least. Unfortunately for head coach David Guion, Bordeaux come into this matchday on a run of 13 Ligue 1 matches without winning (D4, L9), their longest winless top-flight streak ever. What’s more, Bordeaux’s tally of 70 goals conceded from their 29 Ligue 1 outings this season is the joint-worst across Europe’s top-five leagues alongside Bundesliga relegation boys Greuther Furth. Having failed to keep a clean sheet in all 29 top-flight fixtures, they are only two games away from equalling the worst-ever such streak in the competition’s history.