Preview:Lorient vs Toulouse - prediction, team news, lineups

Looking to end a worrying winless run, Lorient will welcome Toulouse to Stade du Moustoir for an all-important Ligue 1 clash on Sunday afternoon.

Les Merlus suffered a heavy defeat at the base of Lens last time out in the top flight, whilst Les Violets shared the spoils with Le Havre on home soil.

Match preview

After winning the Ligue 2 title by two points ahead of Paris FC last season, Lorient are back amongst the biggest names in French club football, although Sunday afternoon's hosts have struggled in recent times, winning just one of their last nine Ligue 1 battles to date.

In fact, Les Merlus' winless streak extended to a highly-concerning five games last Sunday afternoon, when goals from Odsonne Edouard, Wesley Said and Samson Baidoo secured a 3-0 triumph for Lens from a contest in which Mohamed Bamba missed a penalty.

Collecting just two points across their last five top-flight fixtures, Lorient are currently occupying 16th spot in the Ligue 1 standings ahead of this weekend's battle with Toulouse, level on points with 15th-placed Nantes but just two points ahead of bottom side Auxerre.

It is safe to say that Les Merlus are set to rely heavily on their home form as they look to avoid an immediate return to the second tier, with Olivier Pantaloni's troops losing only one of their five Ligue 1 matches at Stade du Moustoir, although that defeat was a shocking one - a 7-1 battering at the hands of Lille on August 30.

Lifting the Ligue 2 title three years earlier in 2022, Toulouse have represented the model of steady progress since returning to the summit of French football, securing three consecutive mid-table finishes and looking to compete for a European berth this time around.

However, since the 4-0 battering of Metz on home turf, Les Violets' continental-chasing ambitions have taken a slight detour, with Carles Martinez's men currently in the midst of a three-game winless run, one which started with a 1-0 defeat at Monaco on October 25.

Toulouse's November schedule commenced with a frustrating share of the points with Le Havre, meaning that Charlie Cresswell and company sit ninth in the Ligue 1 rankings with 15 points from 11 matches, five points from Lyon in the lowest of the European positions.

After a number of promising campaigns in the lower divisions of France, Les Violets star Frank Magri is constantly improving on the Ligue 1 stage, with the 26-year-old scoring four goals already this season after managing five strikes across 31 top-flight appearances in 2024-25.

Lorient Ligue 1 form:

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Toulouse Ligue 1 form:

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Team News

Lorient remain without the services of centre-back Abdoulaye Faye, who picked up a foot injury in October, limiting him to just seven Ligue 1 appearances so far this season.

Reducing Les Merlus' options on the right side of midfield, Panos Katseris is expected back in a couple of weeks from a hamstring strain.

After playing a bit-part role in Lorient's Ligue 2 success last term, Bandiougou Fadiga is yet to kick a competitive ball this campaign owing to an ankle issue.

Following an incident during the goalless draw with Le Havre last weekend, Toulouse wing-back Aron Donnum is unlikely to feature.

Sidelined since the beginning of the calendar year, Les Violets midfielder Niklas Schmidt is targeting a return at some point this month.

Lorient possible starting lineup:

Mvogo; Silva, Talbi, Yongwa; Le Bris, Cadiou, Abergel, Kouassi; Tosin, Karim, Bamba

Toulouse possible starting lineup:

Restes; Sidibe, Cresswell, Nicolaisen; Kamanzi, Casseres Jr, Vossah, Methaile; Magri, Gboho, Emersonn