Preview: Metz vs Lille - prediction, team news, lineups

Two sides in search of their first Ligue 1 victories of 2026 will square off in the opening fixture of matchday 21 as Lille visit Stade Saint-Symphorien on Friday to battle Metz.

Last weekend, the Lorraine club lost 1-0 to Angers, keeping them at the bottom of the table, while Lille were beaten by that same score against Lyon, as they sit in fifth place.

Match preview

More often than not, keeping it close has not been good enough for Les Merlus in their first season back in the top-flight.

The club from Eastern France have lost a league-high 14 matches this season, half of which were by a single goal, including the second for Benoit Tavenot as the new manager last week.

As things stand, they are just two points below Nantes for a spot in the relegation playoffs and six back of Le Havre for a guaranteed place in the top-flight next season.

A victory on Friday would end an eight-game losing run for them in this competition and temporarily move them out of the Ligue 1 basement, above Nantes and Auxerre.

Their 46 goals allowed are the most in the competition this season, with this team looking particularly poor defensively at home of late, conceding a combined eight goals in their last two league games at Stade Saint-Symphorien.

Eight of their 12 points over this campaign have come at home, including two of their three triumphs, the last one being in November versus Nice (2-1).

After an encouraging final matchday in the Europa League, Lille slid back down to mediocrity just a few days later, losing a fourth successive Ligue 1 affair last weekend.

That has them clinging to a place in Europe next season, just two points above Strasbourg and Toulouse in the table, and only one ahead of Rennes.

Bruno Genesio’s men have yet to earn a point domestically in 2026, with only one goal in those four encounters combined.

Another defeat on Friday would give them three in a row as the visitors for the first time since March to April of last year.

They have a 100% record against the three newly-promoted sides from last season, scoring a combined 17 goals over that stretch.

One of those lopsided triumphs came at home to Metz last October (6-1) with Les Dogues unbeaten in their previous 10 top-flight meetings against them.

Metz Ligue 1 form:

Metz form (all competitions):

Lille Ligue 1 form:

Lille form (all competitions):

Team News

Due to a head injury, Mamadou Sy is expected to miss this upcoming game for Metz, while Jean-Philippe Gbamin will be out through suspension following his straight red card versus Angers.

Also doubtful for this contest will be Joseph Mangondo, with the 20-year-old striker still suffering from a knee problem.

As for Lille, Thomas Meunier still has a hamstring strain, Osame Sahraoui is dealing with a muscular issue, while Hamza Igamane and Ousmane Toure are out because of cruciate ligament tears.

Expect Marc-Aurele Caillard to sit out again with an elbow injury, while Andre Gomes has a muscle strain and Nabil Bentaleb is doubtful with an upper back issue.

Metz possible starting lineup:

Fischer; Kouao, Colin, Yegbe, F. Toure; Deminguet, Stambouli, Traore; Hein, Diallo, Tsitaishvili

Lille possible starting lineup:

Ozer; Santos, Ngoy, Mandi, Perraud; Broholm, Andre, Bouaddi, Correia; Fernandez-Pardo, Giroud

We say: Metz 1-4 Lille

This is the perfect game for Lille to push men forward and let out their scoring frustrations on a leaky defence that leave far too much space to their opponents in dangerous areas.

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