Lorient vs Monaco 07/01/21

Monaco head to the Stade du Moustoir to take on Lorient, looking to post a fourth consecutive victory in their Ligue 1 H2Hs.

A return of seven losses in their last ten Ligue 1 matches (W1, D2) has given Lorient a daunting task as they look to avoid relegation. Notably, each defeat across the abovementioned ten-game sequence saw ‘Les Merlus’ fail to get on the scoresheet and concede at least one second-half goal. In turn, none of their last five home Ligue 1 fixtures have ended in a draw (W1, L4), with each result (win/loss) seeing the victor keep a clean sheet, which has been the case in all of their three previous top-flight H2Hs held at this venue (L3). Interestingly, Christophe Pélissier’s men have scored two-thirds of their home Ligue 1 goals in the second half of play (6/9), finding the net beyond the 75th minute in three of their eight home league matches.

Meanwhile, Monaco have gone from three consecutive Ligue 1 defeats to two games without losing in a row (W1, D1), with three of the games won/lost in this period being decided by a narrow one-goal margin. In turn, it’s been ‘all or nothing’ for ‘Les Monégasques’ away from home this season (W3, L5). But, those results have been notably tight, as seven (87.5%) of eight come by a single-goal margin. Scoring the opening goal could be the way to all three points for the visitors, as they have won three of four away Ligue 1 fixtures when doing so (L1). However, Niko Kovac’s men have lost each of their three previous away league meetings with newly promoted sides, failing to get on the scoresheet on each occasion.