Monaco vs Lorient: Second vs second bottom
Monaco will surely be looking ahead to the next few weeks, with two important upcoming fixtures likely providing Leonardo Jardim’s side with plenty to think about. With the club set to play back-to-back fixtures against Paris Saint-Germain and OGC Nice, the two clubs challenging them for the Ligue 1 title, there is plenty of entertaining action to come.
In fact, those two games could decide the title race come May, but first Monaco must come through what appears to be a complete mismatch, against an FC Lorient side that have struggled throughout the campaign, on Sunday.
Monaco currently sit in second place in the table, with just one point currently separating them from table-toppers Nice. The principality side went top last weekend with a dominating 4-1 victory over sixth placed Marseille and currently have a game in hand, meaning that a win in Sunday’s game will return them to the top of the table.
Lorient, on the other hand, sit just one place above the bottom spot. Goal different alone currently separates them from bottom club Metz and their fellow relegation candidates also have a game in hand. With Metz set to play their weekend clash first, Lorient could be at the bottom of the pile by the time they take to the pitch in Sunday’s clash.
Three points on Sunday could take them at high as 15th, should results go their way. However, that is unlikely to matter much, given that they come up against a Monaco side that are in a fantastic run of form.
Jardim’s side have suffered some wobbles along the way this season, but their home form has been nothing short of fantastic. The club have played 10 games at the Stade Louis II so far this season and have recorded 8 wins, 1 draw and one loss. That defeat came prior to the winter break, with high-flyers Olympique Lyon producing a brilliant 3-1 win, but it is unlikely to give Lorient much hope.
What will provide Lorient with some belief that they can come away with points on the board is the fact that they have produced victories on their last two visits to the Stade Louis II. However, that doesn’t change the fact that Lorient are having a poor season and are struggling to put the ball in the back of the net consistently.
Bernard Casoni’s side have scored an average of just once per game this season. While it isn’t the worst rate in Ligue 1, it’s far lower than the 60 goals Monaco have netted so far, at a rate of three per game.
Many of those goals have come through Monaco’s Radamel Falcao. The rejuvenated striker has netted 17 times for the club so far this season and is likely to add plenty more to his tally in the second half of the campaign. He added to his tally last weekend in the 4-1 win over Marseille and will be confident of finding the net again this weekend.
Monaco are flying high, and with the chance of returning to the top of the table in the back of their minds, they should be able to pull off another convincing victory in Sunday’s game.
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