On the back of three consecutive draws, Strasbourg will look to stretch their league unbeaten run to five games on Wednesday, when they play host to Bordeaux.
A steady improvement in form has seen the hosts climb to eighth spot in the Ligue 1 table, while their visitors sit 16th, having failed to win any of their last three games.
Match preview
© Reuters
Following a mixed start to the domestic season, Strasbourg sat 12th with 12 points from the opening nine games, and they have seen a slight upturn in form recently.
In the last four games before the recent international break, Les Coureurs picked up two victories and a draw and fell to one defeat, with both wins coming in impressive fashion as they thrashed Saint-Etienne 5-1 and Lorient 4-0.
Upon their return to action, Julien Stephan's side looked set to fall to a 1-0 defeat at the hands of Reims, only for Jean-Ricner Bellegarde to salvage a point with a 97th-minute equaliser, taking their unbeaten run to three matches.
That was stretched to four with another draw last time out, as the Alsace outfit held Monaco to a 1-1 draw away from home thanks to Ludovic Ajorque's leveller.
Their improvement has seen Stephan's side take eighth spot in the French top flight, and, with just a two-point gap between themselves and sixth-placed Angers, Les Coureurs will be keen to stretch their unbeaten streak to five matches with a win on Wednesday.
© Reuters
They welcome a Bordeaux side in a concerning run of form, with the visitors having struggled so far this season.
With just two victories from their 15 league matches so far, Les Girondins find themselves in an unenviable position in the Ligue 1 standings, sitting level on points with Clermont in the relegation playoff place and just a point ahead of Metz in the automatic drop zone.
After a defeat to Paris Saint-Germain and a dramatic 3-3 draw with Metz, Vladimir Petkovic's side suffered another loss last time out, as a Jeremy Le Douaron brace saw Brest overturn a one-goal deficit to leave Bordeaux's home patch with a 2-1 win.
Les Girondins' struggles have largely come in defence this season, with no other side having conceded as many as the 32 goals that they have shipped, and Petkovic will know that they must improve at the back if they are to quickly move away from the threat of relegation.
- W
- L
- W
- D
- D
- D
- D
- D
- W
- L
- D
- L
Team News
© Reuters
Given their upturn in form, Strasbourg are unlikely to make wholesale changes for Wednesday's game, instead sticking with a similar starting XI to the one that produced a commendable result against Monaco last time out.
Centre-back Maxime Le Marchand and forward Lebo Mothiba remain sidelined by injuries, while Ludovic Ajorque and Anthony Caci returned from suspensions last time out and will again feature from the start.
The former will again lead the line after his equaliser in that game, while veteran forward Kevin Gameiro will also be pushing for a start.
Bordeaux remain without forward Josh Maja and experienced centre-back Laurent Koscielny, with the pair continuing to battle injuries.
Mexer and Stian Rode Gregersen should continue to partner up at the back in the absence of the latter, while Alberth Elis could again lead the line, having hit three goals in seven Ligue 1 games since his loan move from Boavista.
Strasbourg possible starting lineup:
Sels; Perrin, Djiku, Nyamsi; Guilbert, Sissoko, Bellegarde, Thomasson, Caci; Ajorque, Diallo
Bordeaux possible starting lineup:
Costil; Pembele, Mexer, Gregersen, Mangas; Otavio, Onana; Dilrosun, Adli, Oudin; Elis
We say: Strasbourg 2-0 Bordeaux
Taking on a vulnerable Bordeaux side, we see Strasbourg extending their impressive run of form on Wednesday.
The visitors are known to be leaky at the back, and they could be outclassed away from home against a side who have started to grind out results consistently.
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 Strasbourg win with a probability of 53.89%. A draw had a probability of 23.8% and a win for Bordeaux had a probability of 22.29%.
The most likely scoreline for a Strasbourg win was 1-0 with a probability of 11.12%. The next most likely scorelines for that outcome were 2-1 (9.75%) and 2-0 (9.58%). The likeliest drawn scoreline was 1-1 (11.31%), while for a Bordeaux win it was 0-1 (6.57%). The actual scoreline of 5-2 was predicted with a 0.4% likelihood. Our team at Sports Mole and our data analysis both correctly predicted that Strasbourg would win this match.
