Lorient vs. Lille (Sunday, 12.00pm)
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Lorient, the surprise package of the French first division so far, host Lille at Stade du Moustoir on Sunday.
Regis Le Bris's side currently sit third in the table, with six wins from their opening eight games, while their opponents are eighth, six points behind Lorient, with three wins and a total of 13 points so far this season.
We say: Lorient 3-2 Lille
With the form that Lorient are in and with Lille's defensive vulnerability, it is hard to see anything but a Lorient win.
Lille will be expected to score a few goals with the quality of Jonathan David leading their attack, but we are backing the hosts to come out on top.
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Ajaccio vs. Clermont (Sunday, 2.00pm)
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Ajaccio return to Stade Francois Coty on Sunday in search of their first home victory of the Ligue 1 campaign when they host Clermont.
L'ours picked up their first win of the season before the international break, defeating Brest 1-0, while Clermont are winless in two consecutive domestic affairs.
We say: Ajaccio 1-0 Clermont
While they have only captured one league fixture so far this season, Ajaccio have been unlucky on a couple of occasions in 2022-23, losing four matches by a single goal.
Clermont could be just the break L'ours need to finally win at home, as the visitors have been poor in the final third, while also being a little too complacent on the road throughout the campaign.
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Auxerre vs. Brest (Sunday, 2.00pm)
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Auxerre will be aiming to end a run of four consecutive defeats when they host Brest in Ligue 1 on Sunday.
The visitors currently find themselves in the relegation zone, and will be aiming to end a winless streak of five games when they travel to the Stade de l'Abbe-Deschamps.
We say: Auxerre 0-1 Brest
Both sides will view this fixture as a good opportunity to turn their fortunes around and begin to put a positive run of results together.
Brest have shown defensive improvements in recent fixtures, and we feel Auxerre's leaky backline could cost them here.
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Toulouse vs. Montpellier (Sunday, 2.00pm)
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Toulouse will be aiming to bounce back from a defeat in their previous match when they play host to Montpellier HSC at the Stadium Muncipal on Sunday.
Les Pitchouns suffered a 2-1 loss away at Lille last time out, while Montpellier come into the fixture following a 2-1 win against Strasbourg.
We say: Toulouse 2-2 Montpellier HSC
Montpellier games have tended to be high-scoring affairs this season, so we expect them to carry on in this vein, but Toulouse should have enough about them to get a point at home.
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Troyes vs. Reims (Sunday, 2.00pm)
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Local rivals meet on Sunday when Troyes host Reims, where a win for the home side will see them claim their fourth win of the season – just five fewer than they managed in the entirety of last season.
For Reims, a poor start sees Oscar Garcia's side currently sat in the relegation places, but even a point could be enough to lift them out of the drop zone.
We say: Troyes 3-1 Reims
Reims are missing a number of key players here and Troyes appear to be hitting good form at the right time, so all the signs point to a convincing home win.
Troyes are yet to keep a clean sheet this season and with the likes of Junya Ito and Folarin Balogun in attack, Reims have enough potency to cause Troyes a few problems. It will however be a huge ask for Reims to take anything from this game.
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Monaco vs. Nantes (Sunday, 4.05pm)
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Monaco will aim to make it four consecutive Ligue 1 wins when they host Nantes at the Stade Louis II on Sunday.
Nantes are winless in their last four league games, tasked with turning their poor form around in a tricky away fixture.
We say: Monaco 3-1 Nantes
Monaco are on a good run of form in the league, and we do not see them slipping up here given the strength of their side and Nantes' poor start to the season.
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Lens vs. Lyon (Sunday, 7.45pm)
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Matchday nine of Ligue 1 will be rounded off at the Stade Bollaert-Delelis on Sunday night, when early high-fliers Lens host a Lyon side on a very poor run of form.
Lens finished a point above their upcoming opponents last season, and the opening stages of the season suggest that could happen again, with Franck Haise's side just one point off a Champions League spot.
We say: Lens 3-2 Lyon
These two sides have scored 32 goals combined in their opening eight matches and have an abundance of capable goalscorers among their squads, so goals could be in high supply here.
Lens' perfect home form combined with Lyon's dreadful record on the road so far makes the hosts slight favourites though, and they may just have enough to edge this encounter.
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Barney Corkhill
