Reims host Nantes in Wednesday's Ligue 1 encounter, with both sides looking to end their recent run of poor form.
David Guion's men are currently languishing in the relegation zone after picking up just two wins in the league so far this season but will see the visit of Nantes as a good opportunity to kickstart their struggling campaign.
Match preview
© Reuters
Just 10 points from their opening 14 Ligue 1 matches has left Reims in 19th position coming into this one and already looking likely to be embroiled in a relegation battle throughout 2020-21.
Goals have not been an issue for Les Rouges et Blancs, with their 17 strikes making them the second-highest scorers in the bottom half of the table.
Almost half of those goals have come through star forward Boulaye Dia. The 24-year-old Senegal international is second in the French goalscoring charts, with his eight efforts only being bettered by Kylian Mbappe's 10.
Reims finished in sixth position in 2019-20's COVID-19 curtailed campaign, although they were knocked out of the Europa League qualifying stages by Hungarian outfit Fehervar.
They are currently on a three-game winless streak with their 2-1 defeat to Brest last time out their ninth league loss already.
Patrick Collot will take charge of his second game as Nantes caretaker manager following the sacking of Christian Gourcuff earlier this month.
Collot drew his first game in charge against Dijon over the weekend, with Moses Simon's penalty enough to earn Les Canaris a point.
Nantes occupy 14th place going into this one after picking up 14 points from their opening 14 games and are without a win in five domestic clashes.
They will be hoping to put some distance between themselves and the relegation zone when they travel to Reims before a new manager comes in to take over the reins.
Reims Ligue 1 form: WDLLDL
Nantes Ligue 1 form: WDDLLD
Team News
© Reuters
Left-back Ghislain Konan remains unavailable for Reims with a back injury, while winger Arber Zeneli and forward Anastasios Donis are both sidelined with muscular problems.
Midfielder Marshall Munetsi is one yellow card away from suspension, so will have to be careful if he is to avoid a one-match ban coming into the hectic festive schedule.
Anthony Limbombe is Nantes' only absentee after Charles Traore recovered from coronavirus to return to the bench against Dijon last time out.
Striking pair Kalifa Coulibaly and Jean-Kevin Augustin are both pushing for returns following their respective issues, and Callot could be tempted to turn to them following his side's struggles in front of goal this season.
Reims possible starting lineup:
Rajkovic; Foket, Faes, Abdelhamid, Konan; Mbuku, Munetsi, Berisha, Kutesa; Toure, Dia
Nantes possible starting lineup:
Lafont; Corchia, Pallois, Girotto, Fabio; Chirivella, Abeid; Louza, Blas, Simon; Kolo Muani
We say: Reims 1-1 Nantes
It should be a tightly contested affair between two evenly matched teams. A win for Reims would likely see them climb out of the relegation zone, whereas a win for Nantes could put some daylight between themselves and the bottom three.
With so much at stake for both teams, it could end up in a stalemate with neither side prepared to risk coming away without a point.
Top betting tip
George Cannon
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 Reims win with a probability of 38.1%. A win for Nantes had a probability of 32.61% and a draw had a probability of 29.3%.
The most likely scoreline for a Reims win was 1-0 with a probability of 12.99%. The next most likely scorelines for that outcome were 2-1 (7.64%) and 2-0 (7.41%). The likeliest Nantes win was 0-1 (11.75%), while for a drawn scoreline it was 1-1 (13.4%). The actual scoreline of 3-2 was predicted with a 1.5% likelihood. Our data analysis correctly predicted that Reims would win this match.
