Strasbourg V Monaco
Sunday 1st September 2019 – 16:00 Kick-Off
French Ligue 1
Pick: Both Teams to Score
Odds: 22/25
Bookmaker: MarathonBet
 |
1 | X | 2 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 17/10 | 43/20 | 17/10 |
* (All betting odds displayed were correct as of 31st August 2019 at 13:55)
Preview: We have exactly half of the teams who are still to record a Ligue 1 victory this season right here. Will either be celebrating come Sunday evening? Strasbourg are the hosts, with Monaco making their way to the Stade de la Meinau. The match can be seen live on BT Sport.
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Strasbourg Preview – Another European hangover for Le Racing?
It could be that their exertions in the qualifying rounds of the Europa League has had a detrimental impact on their ability to begin the new Ligue 1 season well. Then again, this could be them simply reverting to what was the norm in the second half of the previous league campaign. Whatever the reason may be, the fact remains that Strasbourg are one of four sides who remain without a win from their opening three fixtures (D2 L1).
Some small consolation is that their upcoming opponents are also winless so far. Le Racing, though, can only focus on themselves, and all of their focus can now return to reviving their dire form domestically, this after they were eliminated from European competition in midweek. A resounding defeat in Germany, losing 3-0 on the night to Eintracht Frankfurt but 3-1 on aggregate, has meant earlier victories earned over Maccabi Haifa and Lokomotiv Plovdiv mattered little in the end.
Now, coach Thierry Laurey must conjure up a revival of his team’s fortunes in Ligue 1, where they begun with successive draws at home to Metz (1-1) and away at Reims (0-0) before falling to a 2-0 reverse on their own patch to Rennes last weekend. Those results make it one win in the last eleven league fixtures for Strasbourg (W1 D6 L4), whose only league victory at home since January (W1 D5 L3) was a 4-0 rout of Reims.
Monaco Preview – Attacking riches need to deliver return on investment?
If the sole purpose for splashing the case in the summer was to avoid a situation similar to last season, when they flirted with the prospect of relegation for the entirety of the campaign before surviving by the skin of their teeth, then it has not had the desired effect. Three games in and not only are Monaco still without a win but the football remains as incoherent as ever.
At the start of this weekend, Monaco were in 19th position – one fully deserved based on the level of their performances so far, according to Infolgol. Back-to-back defeats against Lyon (0-3) and Metz (3-0) was at least followed by an improved display last time out at home to Nimes (2-2), but these remain worrying times for Les Monegasques.
Some intriguing signings – Islam Slimani on loan from Leicester, Henry Onyekuru from Everton, and the big money recruits of Gelson Martins and Wissam Ben Yedder – are exciting and should invigorate what has been an insipid attack for too long now. However, it still leaves manager Leonardo Jardim with a top-heavy team that, until all these new signings better acclimatise, will continue to produce erratic performances and, as a direct consequence, return inconsistent results.
Strasbourg V Monaco Key Facts:
- Strasbourg have now gone their last six home Ligue 1 games without managing to win (D3 L3).
- Monaco have not earned a victory in any of their previous six away Ligue 1 games (D2 L4).
- League meetings between the two teams were both won by Strasbourg in 2018-19, who were 2-1 winners at home and 5-1 victors away.
Betting Summary
Without European commitments anymore, Strasbourg should be able to regroup and gradually start climbing the table. In the short-term, however, the side needs to produce a huge performance here only days after the disappointment sustained in Germany. No win so far this season (D2 L1), as well as no win at home in Ligue 1 since April (D3 L3), are both statistics which dampen their appeal as favourites here.
Hopeless in their first two league outings of the campaign, in 3-0 defeats versus Lyon and Metz, Monaco did show some signs of improvement last time out to draw 2-2 at home with Nimes. They are back on the road for this encounter, having failed to win nor keep a clean sheet in any of their previous six away Ligue 1 fixtures (D2 L4).
As poor as Monaco have been for a long time now, Strasbourg have also struggled, both in the early stages of this season but also in the latter months of the previous campaign. Therefore, backing either side to win this contest outright requires an element of blind faith. There really shouldn’t be a shortage of goals, though; Strasbourg should get plenty of joy attacking this porous Monaco defence, though the visitors will only improve in the final third themselves with every game played together.
