Lorient vs Monaco

Stade du Moustoir as Lorient welcome Monaco for their opening home game of the 2021/22 Ligue 1 campaign.

An underwhelming 16th-place finish in 2020/21 failed to inspire Lorient in the transfer market as they’ve entered the new campaign with the same cast that barely avoided relegation last season. Christophe Pélissier’s side struggled to hold onto a second-half lead at Saint-Etienne on Matchday 1 (1-1), but they now return to the Stade du Moustoir, where they picked up 76.19% of their total Ligue 1 points last season (32/42). Additionally, since a 4-1 loss to Lille in late February, the hosts have gone undefeated in their subsequent six home league matches (W5, D1). That said, after going unbeaten in seven straight top-flight H2Hs as hosts (W3, D4), ‘Les Merlus‘ have lost each of their last four home Ligue 1 meetings with Monaco, drawing a blank on three occasions.

On the other hand, the visitors head into proceedings on the back of a 3-1 thrashing of Sparta Prague in their Champions League qualifier, a victory that extended Monaco’s unbeaten streak in all competitions to four games (W2, D2). Despite facing just a single shot on target in their Ligue 1 curtain-raiser against Nantes, the club from the French principality had to settle for a dismal 1-1 draw. Yet, it means ‘Les Monégasques‘ have suffered just two defeats in their last 24 Ligue 1 fixtures (W17, D5), 2020/21 included. Moreover, Niko Kovac’s men have been nothing short of outstanding away from home this calendar year, notably winning nine of their 11 Ligue 1 trips in 2021 so far (D1, L1). Each of Monaco’s last five away top-flight games has yielded a clean sheet.