Brest Vs Lille-French Ligue 1
French Ligue 1 leaders LOSC Lille travel to Brest tomorrow and know that they should avoid last heroics as they look to consolidate their place on top of the Ligue 1.
Rudi Garcia’s side has won the last two games in the league against Marseille and Valenciennes respectively and they won both games through injury-time goals. Of late, LOSC have made this a habit to score winners late into the games and Eden Hazard’s stunning
goal against Valenciennes last week was the 7th time the league leaders had scored in added time this season.
While talking to the media, Garcia also pointed out the fact that his team scores late goals a bit too frequently but also added that it shows that his team has players who are mentally strong and capable enough to draw out a good result at any stage of
the game. “Scoring such late goals shows that we are mentally strong, and capable of remaining calm even in difficulty or when time is running out,” said the Lille manager. But he also said that his side should do better against Brest and should avoid taking
the game to a nervous finale.
For 12 consecutive weeks, Lille have been leading the French Ligue 1 table and out of their last 17 games, they have lost just once. Many say that this side is definitely one to lift the championship this time. And who can bet against a side that has the
likes of Rio Mavuba, Adil Rami, Moussa Sow and Eden Hazard?
However, Garcia may have a limited squad to choose from when his side steps on to the Stade Francis Le Ble. Rio Mavuba, Jerry Vandam and Emerson are all out injured while Florent Balmont has to complete a 2-match ban. Moreover, Tulio De Melo, Debuchy, Yohan
and Gervinho are also major doubts because of illness.
Although Brest will be hosting a seemingly depleted Lille side, Brest haven’t made a major impact on the league since the start of the second half of the campaign. They have won just 2 games in the last 12 outings, a string of poor results that has seen
them drop to the bottom half of the table. Being a good defensive side was the hallmark of their start to the current campaign but they have now let in 15 goals in just 8 games. Although, Brest have been good at home they will be up against one of the best
attacks in France and Brest coach Alex Dupont has said that he would want Lille to become champions this time. “I am not a Lille supporter but I would like to see them win the title,” said the Brest manager. Dupont doesn’t admit that his team is the worst
team in the league and said that the recent run of results is just a learning curve for his side.
Ousmane Coilibaly signed a three-year contract with the club this week but won’t be available for this game along with Nolan Roux and Yoann Bigne. However, Moise Apanga, Tomas Micola and Benoit Lesoimier will be returning after recovering from injuries.