Troyes host Montpellier HSC on Sunday in Ligue 1, and the home side will look to make it two wins in two matches, after winning their first game of the season last weekend against Metz.
The visitors are on nine points, which leaves them two points better off than their opponents, and they are also entering the fixture off the back of a victory, thanks to a 2-0 win against Saint-Etienne last time out.
Match preview
© Reuters
Troyes are experiencing their first Ligue 1 campaign since the 2017-18 edition after they won Ligue 2 last season to book a place in the top flight.
Their first four games of the season only yielded a solitary point, but they won their fifth match of the campaign against Metz, which may act as a springboard for Troyes to start picking up more points to try and move themselves up the table.
The 2-0 win over Metz was a result of two second-half efforts by Dynamo Kyiv loanee Gerson Rodrigues and midfielder Xavier Chavalerin, which were the first goals either have scored in a Troyes shirt since joining in the summer.
The newly-promoted side are yet to win at home this season and are looking to avoid making history on Sunday, as they have never begun a top-flight season with three straight home defeats.
Unfortunately for the hosts, their recent record against Montpellier is discouraging, having not emerged victorious in their last eight competitive meetings with Sunday's opponents, and their last victory came in January 2008 in a Ligue 2 fixture.
© Reuters
Montpellier enter the encounter fresh off a 2-0 victory over Saint-Etienne, with Stephy Mavididi and Valere Germain getting on the scoresheet.
The visitors have been clinical in front of goal this season, demonstrated by the fact that before the weekend's fixtures only Paris Saint Germain have scored more than the 11 goals that La Paillade have notched in Ligue 1 this term.
An area of concern for Montpellier is that their success has come at home and they are yet to win away in Ligue 1 this campaign, having lost to Lille and drawing to Reims on the road.
The away form will be worrying for Montpellier boss Olivier Dall'Oglio because they were successful on the road last season, only losing four of their 19 league away games.
Positively, the visitors know they usually fare well against Sunday's opponents and will look to replicate the 1-0 victory they achieved in their last Ligue 1 trip to Troyes.
- L
- L
- D
- L
- W
- L
- D
- W
- L
- W
Team News
© Reuters
Troyes are still without injured duo Youssouf Kone and Yasser Larouci.
Lauren Batlles also has both Metinho and Hyun-Jun Suk unavailable, and Renaud Ripart is a doubt for the hosts.
It could be an unchanged team for the home side as they look to build upon last weekend's win.
Montpellier are without defenders Ambroise Oyongo and Pedro Mendes due to injuries.
The visitors are also missing the injured pair of Jonas Omlin and Mamadou Sakho, who have groin and thigh problems respectively.
Dall'Oglio will welcome back Florent Mollet and Junior Sambia from suspension and the Montpellier boss must decide whether the duo come back into the starting lineup.
Troyes possible starting lineup:
Gallon; Kabore, Giraudon, Salmier, Azamoum, Biancone; Chavalerin, Tardieu, Kouame; Rodrigues, Touzghar
Montpellier HSC possible starting lineup:
Bertaud; Sambia, Thuler, Cozza, Ristic; Mollet, Savanier, Ferri; Wahi, Mavididi, Germain
We say: Troyes 1-2 Montpellier HSC
Troyes will be determined to win their first home game of the season, but against Montpellier that may prove too tall of a task, and though the match may be close, the visitors should edge out the hosts to collect their first away victory of the season.
Top tip
Data Analysis
Our analysis of all available data, including recent performances and player stats up until an hour before kickoff, suggested the most likely outcome of this match was a Troyes win with a probability of 41.49%. A win for Montpellier HSC had a probability of 31.17% and a draw had a probability of 27.3%.
The most likely scoreline for a Troyes win was 1-0 with a probability of 11.7%. The next most likely scorelines for that outcome were 2-1 (8.51%) and 2-0 (7.71%). The likeliest Montpellier HSC win was 0-1 (9.81%), while for a drawn scoreline it was 1-1 (12.91%). The actual scoreline of 1-1 was predicted with a 12.9% likelihood.
