Preview:Brest vs Nice - prediction, team news, lineups

One of two winless sides in Ligue 1 will return to action on Saturday as Brest host Nice on matchday five at Stade Francis-Le Ble.

Les Pirates are second from the bottom after losing 2-1 at home to Paris FC, while Nice are ninth, defeating Nantes 1-0 in their previous affair.

Match preview

Four matches into the new campaign, and little has gone the way of Stade Brestois, who have equaled their worst start to a domestic season since 2021-22 (two points).

This club have not gone winless in their opening five games since that campaign, and this weekend could lose four of their first five league contests for the first time since their 2006-07 Ligue 2 season.

Their last three matches in this competition ended in defeat, and another one on Saturday would mark their longest losing run since Eric Roy took charge in 2023.

Defensively, this team have plenty of room for improvement, especially at home, where they have given up five goals in their first two league fixtures, one more than they conceded in their final six domestic affairs in Brittany last season.

Brest have not suffered consecutive defeats at Stade Francis-Le Ble in this competition since 2023, losing to Monaco (2-1) and Paris Saint-Germain (2-1) that year.

Four of their five goals scored in Ligue 1 this season occurred on their home ground, while they have netted in 12 successive outings at Stade Francis-Le Ble.

Nice got back to winning ways last week, holding Nantes to just three efforts on target, while collecting their first clean sheet of the 2025-26 season.

On Saturday, Franck Haise’s side can win consecutive league fixtures for the first time since April-May of the previous campaign (three), and also end a two-match losing run away from home in this competition.

They have gone on to win their previous four Ligue 1 affairs when holding the opposition off the score sheet in the opening half, collecting three clean sheets over that stretch.

Since dropping a 3-2 decision to arch-rivals Monaco in 2024, this team are undefeated domestically when netting multiple goals, winning those last four such matches.

When scoring the opener, they have won six successive league contests, while collecting points in seven straight encounters after drawing first blood.

Les Aiglons have earned points in eight of their previous nine Ligue 1 fixtures against Stade Brestois, without conceding a single goal in those last seven outings.

Brest Ligue 1 form:

Nice Ligue 1 form:

Nice form (all competitions):

Team News

Last week, Mama Balde was taken off at the half with what appeared to be a thigh issue, Lucas Tousart sat out with a calf strain, while Hugo Magnetti and Radoslaw Majecki were suspended, though the French midfielder is eligible to return to the Brest lineup on Saturday.

Gregoire Courdert replaced the Monaco loanee between the sticks versus Paris FC, stopping two of the four shots that he faced, while Romain Del Castillo’s second-half penalty was a mere consolation, his first of the new campaign.

Due to cruciate ligament injuries, Youssouf Ndayishimiye and Mohamed Abdelmonem missed the previous Nice match, Moise Bombito had a shin issue, Tanguy Ndombele and Ali Abdi had sore groins, while Mohamed Ali-Cho was dealing with a knock.

Jeremie Boga scored the only goal of their match last week, his team-leading second of the season, while Yehvann Diouf made three stops to collect his first clean sheet with Le Gym since signing in the summer from Reims.

Brest possible starting lineup:

Coudert; Lala, Chardonnet, Le Cardinal, Locko; Doumbia, Chotard, Mboup; Del Castillo, Ajorque, Lascary

Nice possible starting lineup:

Diouf; Oppong, Bah, Dante; Clauss, Boudaoui, Sanson, Bard; Diop, Boga; Moffi

We say: Brest 1-2 Nice

Roy has a lot of issues to address with Brest at the moment that cannot be fixed overnight, and we do not trust the team's uneasiness defensively will do the job this weekend.

For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.