AS Monaco will look to keep their quest for a place in next season's Champions League on track with a victory at home against Metz.
They must beat a Metz team who travel to the Stade Louis II with only pride to play for after a 4-0 home defeat against Lorient consigned them to relegation.
Monaco
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Monaco's season may be viewed as something of a success after knocking out Arsenal to reach the Champions League quarter-finals before being edged out by eventual finalists Juventus.
However, the Monagasques could see their domestic campaign end on a sour note if they fail to take six points from their remaining two games.
Defeat at Marseille last weekend, despite taking an early lead at the Stade Velodrome, leaves OM only two points off Monaco, who occupy the final Champions League place for next season, but with a better goal difference than AS.
Furthermore, Saint-Etienne are level on points with Marseille and their goal difference is only three worse than Leonardo Jardim's team heading into the final fixtures of the campaign.
Part of their inability to secure Champions League football sooner is their lack of goals at the Stade Louis II. Monaco's tally of 21 from 18 games is the worst of any side in the top half of the division.
That lack of goals has seen them win only seven times at home in the league, with nine draws, although AS have at least avoided defeat in their last six in the principality.
If they are to rediscover that goalscoring touch, it could come down to Anthony Martial, who has netted nine in Ligue 1, or Bernardo Silva, who has eight goals to his name.
Recent form: DWDWWL
Recent form (all competitions): LDDWWL
Metz
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Regardless of what happens away to Monaco, or in the final game of the season at home to Lille next weekend, Les Granats will be playing their football in Ligue 2 next term.
With Metz 11 points from safety, relegation always appeared to be inevitable, but the manner in which their fate was confirmed may have disappointed their loyal support.
Their drop to the second tier was sealed after an emphatic 4-0 defeat at the hands of Lorient last weekend, in a game where Metz rarely looked like showing any fight to keep themselves in contention for survival.
However, it could be argued that Les Granats' fans may have expected such a result, seeing their side win only twice in the league since the turn of the year - against relegation candidates Toulouse and at home to bottom-of-the-table Lens.
Any Metz supporters hoping for a trip to the principality may want to think again, having only seen their team triumph once on the road – a 1-0 victory at Guingamp in September.
Their lack of wins away from the Stade Municipal Saint-Symphorien comes from a dearth of goals scored. They have scored five times in 18 matches, the worst of any team in the division.
However, one statistic that could offer solace to Metz and their support is their comparatively solid defence. Of the teams in the bottom half of Ligue 1, only Nantes have conceded fewer on the road.
Recent form: WWDLLL
Team News
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Jardim's biggest selection headache will likely be over who should replace Aymen Abdennour in the heart of defence, after the Tunisian international was ruled out of the final two games of the season.
Wallace, who came off the bench to replace Abdennour at the Stade Velodrome, could earn a start in the backline.
However, their 4-1 victory over Toulouse, prior to the Marseille defeat, may encourage the Portuguese coach to persist with a front three of Martial, Yannick Ferreira Carrasco and Silva.
Jeremy Toulalan and Dimitar Berbatov, both of whom were named among the substitutes against OM, could also be contention for a return.
Albert Cartier may opt to reshuffle his Metz team ahead of a return to Ligue 2 and could start with Yeni N'Gbakoto, who came off the bench at half time against Lorient.
Another option for the Metz boss could see midfielder Cheick Doukoure recalled to the starting lineup.
Monaco possible starting lineup:
Subasic, Raggi, Kurzawa, Wallace, Carvalho, Fabinho, Moutinho, Silva, Ferreira Carrasco, Kondogbia, Martial
Metz possible starting lineup:
Mfa Mezui, Bussmann, Metanire, Choplin, Palomino, Kashi, Doukoure, Sarr, Malouda, N'Gbakoto, Maiga
Head To Head
Not surprisingly, perhaps, Monaco have largely had the better of things against Metz of late, winning four of the last five meetings between the pair.
However, Les Grenats' last victory over AS did come at the Stade Louis II, when Mathieu Duhamel and Pierre Bouby steered the club to a 2-0 victory in December 2011.
A late Ferreira Carrasco goal saw that Monaco won the reverse fixture 1-0 just before Christmas.
We say: Monaco 2-0 Metz
Although Monaco still need to end their relative goal drought at home, it is hard to ignore Metz's woeful away record and a second away win of the season seems unlikely for the already-relegated outfit. We've plumped for a 2-0 win to keep AS in the top three.
Chris O'Keefe
