19th placed Lille will seek to continue their recent head to head dominance over 15th placed Caen and move out of the Ligue 1 relegation zone when the two sides meet at Stade Pierre Mauroy this Tuesday evening.
Les Dogues have triumphed in the last five meetings between the teams – a run that included a narrow 1-0 success in last season’s corresponding fixture courtesy of a goal from centre-back Adama Soumaro.
The bookmakers make Lille odds-on favourites to win again this time around however Frederic Antonetti’s men are far from certain to bag three points having earned just one draw from their last four Ligue 1 outings.
That point came on Saturday night in a dour 0-0 stalemate at fellow strugglers Nantes and a repeat performance here may only be good enough for a similar result.
And whilst all three of Lille’s victories this term have arrived at Stade Pierre Mauroy, the hosts look woefully under-priced for this contest at 3/4 even with Caen in equally bad form.
The visitors have lost five of their last seven games in all competitions and have the worst away record in Ligue 1 with just one point from a possible 21 on their travels.
Nonetheless, they put in a decent shift against Marseille when last on the road to lose by just a single goal whilst their 1-1 home draw with 5th placed Guingamp at the weekend marked a definite improvement for Patrice Garande’s side.
Whilst not quite enough to make the 4/1 about a Caen win on Tuesday tempting, the visitors shouldn’t be classed as massive underdogs and Garande’s men will feel that this is the fixture to turn things around away from Stade Michel d’Ornano prior to the international break.
The two clubs have scored just 21 goals between them in the Ligue 1 campaign thus far and that poultry sum further leads towards a tight, low scoring affair in midweek.
We think it’s too close to call and therefore the 12/5 about a draw looks perfectly fair.
And in terms of the final score, don’t be at all surprised if neither team manages to hit the net – the 11/2 about this one finishing goalless should definitely be considered.
Head To Head
Lille have won the last five meetings between the sides including a 1-0 victory in last season's corresponding fixture.
Lille vs Caen Stats
The teams have scored just 21 Ligue 1 goals between them this term from 28 combined outings.
Lille Team News
Frederic Antonetti has several injury concerns ahead of Caen's visit to Stade Pierre Mauroy. Captain Rio Mavuba has a thigh strain whilst wingers Eric Bautheac and Ryan Mendes are both doubtful with pelvic injuries. Striker Junior Tallo remains absent with a knee injury.
Caen Team News
There are no new injury worries for Patrice Garande however full-back Mouhammadou Dabo (hamstring) and midfielder Jeff Louis (knee) are still out of contention.
