Seeking to avoid a third successive Ligue1 defeat, Montpellier will welcome Monaco to the Stade de la Mosson on Sunday afternoon.
Team News
Montpellier
- Savanier will spend three games on the naughty step following his straight reed against Troyes. But Elye Wahi’s sending off against Strasbourg a few days before was overturned.
- Ambroise Oyongo is preparing for the knockout rounds of the AFCON with Cameroon. Meanwhile, Pedro Mendes, Thibault Tamas and Maxime Esteve continue their spells out of action through injury.
- With no Savanier in the fold, Mollet could potentially shift into a central role behind the returning Valare Germain with Wahi shifting over to the right flank. Alternatively, Jordan Ferri could move further forward as Junior Sambia returns to the middle.
Monaco
- Benoit Badiashile, Myron Boadu and Djibril Sidibe make up a trio of hamstring-related concerns for Clement who will likely have to do without all three men this weekend.
- Aleksandr Golovin is still struggling with his abdominal issue and may also miss out. As such, Cesc Fabregas attempts to fight off a bout of illness and Krepin Diatta remains absent for the long-term with his ACL injury.
- Ismail Jakobs was sacrificed at half time for Bed Yedder against Clermont and the latter will expect to resume his prolific partnership with Kevin Volland from the first whistle.
Prediction Analysis
Montpellier’s task has been made even harder this weekend as Savanier watches on from the sidelines with Dall’Oglio’s side being given a harsh reality check following their abundance of festive joy.
A home win versus a newly promoted side may not be a perfect indicator of how Monaco will fare under Clement in the long term. But we still expect Clement’s strong start to continue thanks to the deadly attacking duo.
Our Prediction is Montpellier 2-1 Monaco.
Possible Lineup
Montpellier: Omlin, Souquet, Cozza, Sakho, Ristic, Ferri, Chotard, Wahi, Mollet, Mavididi, Germain.
Monaco: Nubel, Aguilar, Disasi, Maripan, Henrique, Martins, Tchouameni, Fofana, Diop, Ben Yedder, Volland.