Lille will travel to Stade François Coty this Friday to face Ligue 1 newcomers Ajaccio in the fourth round of the 2022/23 Ligue 1 season.
Venue: Stade François Coty (Ajaccio)
Key Statistics
Ajaccio have lost their last seven meetings with Lille.
They are unbeaten in their last six games at home (W5, D1).
The hosts have kept two clean sheets in their last two games and have not conceded over one goal at home since April 2021.
Lille have won just one of their last five away league games (D2, L2).
They have failed to score in their last two away league games.
The visitors have conceded nine goals in the league this season. Only bottom of the table Troyes (10) have conceded more.
Head to head
In ten head-to-head meetings between both sides, Lille have seven wins while Ajaccio have just one win and two draws.
Latest performances in all competition
Ajaccio: L-D-L-D-L
Lille: L-D-W-W-L
Ajaccio
Ligue 1 newbies will look to get their first win of the season when they welcome top-four hopefuls Lille to Stade François Coty this Saturday.
The hosts since returning to the top flight have endured a poor start, registering just one point from their opening three games.
That point came in a goalless draw with Lens in matchday two and was followed by a disappointing 2-1 loss to Rennes last weekend.
However, they will not be overly panicked, as all three games they have played so far have come against likely European spot contenders in Lyon, Lens and Rennes.
Although coach Olivier Pantaloni stated that facing big teams will allow his team to “play more freely”, Ajaccio now face another tough test against Lille, a side that his side have lost to in each of their last seven head-to-heads.
However, they will come into this tie hopeful of getting a decent result given their home form. Pantaloni’s side are looking to extend their current six-game unbeaten run at Stade François Coty (W5, D1). They will hope to rely on a backline that has not conceded over 1.5 goals here since April 2021.
Possible Ajaccio starting line-up
Benjamin Leroy; Mickael Alphonse, Oumar Gonzalez, Fernand Mayembo, Ismael Dialoo; Cyrille Bayala, Vincent Marchetti, Thomas Mangani, Yanis Cimignani; Mounaim El Idrissy, Romain Hamouma.
Injured: None
Doubtful: None
Suspended: None
Lille
Lille will look to bounce back from their embarrassing loss to Paris Saint-Germain last weekend when they travel to Ajaccio on Friday.
The visitors suffered a humiliating 7-1 loss to defending champions PSG on Matchday two, conceding their first goal of the game just after eight seconds–joint-fastest goal in Ligue 1 history.
After the game head coach, Paulo Fonseca spoke positively, and promised fans that his side will “do better in the next game”. He will now hope that his men can make good their promise to avoid a backlash from their often volatile fanbase.
However, their form on the road will not inspire so much confidence in their travelling fans as they won just one of their league games played away from home.
Possible Lille starting line-up
Leo Jardim; Bafode Diakite, Jose Fonte, Alexsandro Ribeiro, Ismaily; Benjamin Andre, Angel Gomes; Jonathan Bamba, Yusuf Yazici, Jonathan David; Mohamed Bayo.
Injured: Timothy Weah
Doubtful: None
Suspended: None
Prediction
Ajaccio 1-1 Lille
