The Ligue 1 weekend gets underway at the Stade de l'Abbe Deschamps on Friday night, when a faltering Auxerre side face relegation-threatened Saint-Etienne.
Christophe Pelissier has seen his side's form fall off a cliff in recent weeks, while Les Verts are battling near the bottom as expected on their return to the top flight.
Match preview
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At the start of December, Auxerre were well in the hunt for European football, following a run of 13 points in five matches to end November.
However, AJA have not won since in any competition, taking just three points from six Ligue 1 games, and suffering a shock Coupe de France defeat at home to Dunkerque.
The worst result of their faltering league form came last weekend too, losing 2-0 away to Angers, with Gabriel Osho's early red card hardly helping matters.
These results have seen Pelissier's men slump to 11th, with Angers moving level on points with them after that win last weekend, while Reims have also closed the gap.
Auxerre were in the top seven less than two months ago, but now they find themselves as close to the relegation zone than they are to there, with upcoming opponents Saint-Etienne occupying that final relegation place.
Hoping to end their worst run of home form (four without a win) since they suffered relegation in 2022-23, Auxerre will hope they can repeat the performance they enjoyed against Les Verts in Ligue 2 last season, winning 5-2 here.
However, the visitors won 3-1 in the reverse fixture back in October, and have enjoyed something of a resurgence under new manager Eirik Horneland, who arrived during the brief winter break.
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Despite starting the weekend in the bottom three, Horneland has led Saint-Etienne to four points from his opening three games, and they only narrowly lost 2-1 away to league leaders Paris Saint-Germain two weeks ago.
Goal difference is all that separates them with Rennes and Nantes, who sit just above the drop zone, and it was the Canaries who Saint-Etienne faced last weekend, with Augustine Boakye salvaging a point late on for Horneland's side.
Nantes are also the only team they have taken a point against away from home this season though, losing all five since, conceding 14 goals in the process.
Letting in almost 3.5 goals-per-game on the road in Ligue 1 this season illustrates why Saint-Etienne find themselves where they are, but things could be changing for the better under the new manager, who restricted an often free-scoring PSG to just two goals in his only away game so far.
Form on the road is unlikely to improve much with their upcoming fixtures though, with three of their next four coming away from the Stade Geoffroy-Guichard including trips to high-flying Marseille and Lille.
Team News
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Osho's red card at Angers last week means the Auxerre defender will be suspended here, along with Paul Joly, who was sent off a week earlier against Lille.
Also in defence, Jubal missed the defeat at Angers with an adductor injury, and it is unlikely he will return in time for this one.
Auxerre have yet to enter the transfer market, but they have seen one of their players leave this month, with Malagasy midfielder Rayan Raveloson moving to Swiss champions Young Boys.
Saint-Etienne are a club notorious for their youth academy, and the next possible graduate made his full debut last weekend, with Djylian N'Guessan becoming the 11th-youngest starter in Ligue 1 history after only turning 16 in August, but last week's hero Boakye must start, and it could be the youngster he replaces.
The visitors have two players suspended for this one, with Ibrahim Sissoko out after his dismissal against Marseille, which was upgraded to a seven-match ban, while Benjamin Bouchouari has reached the yellow card limit.
Goalkeeper Gautier Larsonneur has been a busy man between the sticks for Saint-Etienne this season, but he will hope to continue a fine career record against Auxerre in which he is unbeaten in all previous six clashes - winning five.
Auxerre possible starting lineup:
Larsonneur; Appiah, Batubinsika, Nade, Petrot; Fomba, Bouchouari, Mouton; Boakye, Stassin, Davitashvili
Saint-Etienne possible starting lineup:
Leon; Hoever, Diomande, Akpa, Mensah; Perrin, Diousse, Owusu, Massengo, Traore; Sinayoko
We say: Auxerre 1-2 Saint-Etienne
Auxerre's bubble has burst in dramatic fashion, having now gone seven games without a win, with only Le Havre taking fewer points since the start of December.
Saint-Etienne may be down in the bottom three still, but the improvements they have made under Horneland are there for all to see, and they will fancy their chances against an out-of-form Auxerre.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
Andrew Delaney
