After a three-week absence, Brest return to Ligue 1 action on Sunday looking to get their season back on track away to Montpellier HSC at the Stade de la Mosson.
A postponement of their gameweek 12 meeting with Strasbourg coupled with the international break mean that Brest have not featured since November 5, while Montpellier went into the break off the back of a good draw with high-flying Nice.
Match preview
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Montpellier could not have been handed a much tougher couple of games immediately before the international break, facing Paris Saint-Germain away from home and then Nice in front of their own fans so far this month.
A 3-0 defeat to PSG was nothing to be too ashamed about, while the goalless draw with unbeaten Nice in their most recent outing should act as a good foundation from which to build heading into the busiest part of the campaign.
Certainly, Montpellier will be feeling better about their form than a current run of just one win in four might suggest, but manager Michel Der Zakarian will know that getting more wins on the board in the coming weeks will be imperative, starting against the club that sacked him in October 2022.
The upcoming stage of the season is set to be a pivotal one with only five points separating the final European spot and the relegation playoff place, and Montpellier currently sit just one point clear of the latter.
Key to improving that position will be their ability to start picking up points when they may not be expected to; all three of their wins this season have come against teams currently in the bottom five.
Sunday could be a perfect opportunity to beat a team currently above them in the standings for the first time this season, as they welcome a Brest side in poor form and lacking any recent action.
While all clubs are in a similar boat due to the international break, Brest also saw their final match before the break postponed due to Storm Ciaran, meaning that they have not played since the 2-0 defeat to Monaco at the start of this month.
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That result made it three defeats in a row and five games without a win for the Pirates, although like Montpellier, that form is perhaps a little misleading given that they have faced all of the current top four during that five-game spell.
Even so, manager Eric Roy will know that getting back to winning ways as quickly as possible is crucial to prevent any rot setting in, with Brest in danger of losing four Ligue 1 games in a row within the same season for the first time since January 2021.
Fortunately, things do get a bit easier on the fixture front now, with their next seven games all coming against teams currently below them in the table, giving them an ideal opportunity to consolidate their position as European contenders.
Such an idea was a long way from their thoughts when Roy took over the relegation battlers in January, but it is now realistic having been sat in the top six throughout the season so far, only dropping to their current position of eighth by virtue of other teams taking advantage of that postponement before the break.
Brest will have the chance to make up that difference when they play their game in hand on December 7, part of a spell of five matches in the next three weeks which could go a long way to defining their season.
The visitors will at least be confident of avoiding as damning a fate as Montpellier inflicted on them last season, when La Paillade won home and away by an aggregate score of 10-0 - including a 7-0 humiliation at the Stade Francis-Le Ble, when Der Zakarian was in the Brest dugout rather than the Montpellier one.
Team News
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Montpellier will be without Leo Leroy (pelvis) and Issiaga Sylla (calf) for this match, with both players having failed to recover from injury during the international break.
Arnaud Nordin is also a doubt for the hosts, but there is better news in the form of Kiki Kouyate returning from suspension.
Top-scorer Akor Adams will once again lead the line for Der Zakarian's men, having netted seven times in just 11 league appearances so far this season.
Brest, meanwhile, will be without the suspended Lilian Brassier, who received a late red card in the defeat to Monaco.
There are no other injury concerns for the visitors though, and there was good news during the international break as key trio Pierre Lees-Melou, Jeremy Le Douaron and Romain Del Castillo all signed new contracts to keep them at the club until 2027.
Montpellier HSC possible starting lineup:
Lecomte; Sacko, Kouyate, Esteve, Sainte-Luce; Chotard, Ferri; Tamari, Savanier, Fayad; Adams
Brest possible starting lineup:
Bizot; Lala, Chardonnet, Locko, Amavi; Magnetti, Lees-Melou, Camara; Castillo, Mounie, Douaron
We say: Montpellier HSC 2-0 Brest
Both teams will point to difficult recent fixtures as to why their formbooks are misleading going into this match, but despite Brest sitting higher in the table and having generally been the better side this season, we are backing the home side to come away with the points.
Montpellier have only been beaten once at home all season and have not conceded in any of their last three home games, whereas Brest have failed to score in any of their last three away games.
It is a more confident Brest side than the one that lost last season's meetings 10-0 on aggregate, but they have also only won one of their last 15 meetings with Montpellier, and we are backing Der Zakarian to get one over on his former club.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
Top tip
Barney Corkhill
