Auxerre’s Highly-Anticipated Ligue 1 Return to Start With a Draw Against Lille
Lille OSC vs AJ Auxerre - 07/08/2022
2354
Ligue 1 action kicks off this weekend with LOSC Lille welcoming Auxerre to the Stade Pierre Mauroy as the 2020/21 champions look to improve on their poor 10th-placed finish last time out just as the away side gets the ball rolling on its Ligue 1 career.
It’s been 10 years since we last saw Auxerre in the top flight of French football and with them having eight seasons in Ligue 2 ever since, they are now back in Ligue 1 after a fantastic year in the second tier that saw them finish third.
It was Jean-Marc Furlan's third year with the club, and after finishing 11th, sixth and now third, there is not that much hope they can go on and progress throughout the top flight.
By finishing third, they ended up in the relegation playoffs, where the winner between them and St-Etienne would be in Ligue 1 for next season.
Auxerre also came into that game with great confidence, as they won 21 of the 38 games in Ligue 2, scoring 61 times and conceding 39 in the process.
What's more they only lost six Ligue 2 games prior to the match against St-Etienne, and the two-legged relegation playoffs final ended in a 1-1 draw as Gaetan Perrin scored with four minutes remaining to keep them in the tie.
Hamza Sakhi scored after 51 minutes in the second leg for Auxerre, but an equaliser later on in the second half forced extra time and then penalties. Auxerre would win a thrilling shootout 5-4 and subsequently head into Ligue 1 after a decade of waiting.
The former Ligue 2 side also had a topsy-turvy preseason in preparation for their Ligue 1 return, as Grenoble Foot 38, Reims and Amiens SC all defeated them this summer.
On the other hand, Auxerre managed to register wins over US Orleans, UNF, Troyes, and most recently, Red Star Belgrade.
As for Lille, they put on record one of the worst title defences in Ligue 1 history last time out as they finished 10th and a stunning 31 points adrift of champions Paris Saint-Germain.
They conceded 48 goals and let in 48 too, with them also winning only 14 of the 38 games.
Lille could get the job done here, however, with there still being a great contrast between these two sides, despite the 2020/21 champions struggling last campaign. On the other hand, Auxerre have proven their worth this summer and could spring up an upset.
Forebet predicts a draw here and for the game to see under 2.5 goals.
Home team
Away team
Pred
Correct score
Avg. goals
Weather conditions
Coef.
Score
Live
coef.
Fr1
333631
X
1 - 1
2.30
24°
3.50
1.75
3.50
4.75
no
no
no
4 - 1(3 - 0)
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