Caen vs Lille Predictions

Between the start of October and the 9th of December Caen picked up just four points from a possible 27. However, they have picked up the same number of points in their last two matches as Fabien Mercadal’s side have really gotten the bit between their teeth. Their recent draws with Strasbourg, Bordeaux and Reims have shown what this Caen side are capable of as the likes of Faycal Fajr and Saîf-Eddine Khaoui are very talented players. 

They beat Ligue 2 side Red Star on Saturday in the Coupe de France and this has just continued the good form at the club with them now unbeaten in four matches. They have been much better in attacking positions recently with nine scored in their last six games despite them managing just two in the previous half-dozen. Their defence has failed to improve though with them keeping just two clean sheets in their last 11 games in all competitions. They kept it tight in their last match against Red Star (1-0) but this was against a team bottom of Ligue 2 so there is still work to be done. Nevertheless, Caen seem to finally be on the up with their first and second wins in quick succession since September lifting the spirits at the club, which could really pay dividends as they face a Lille side with confidence issues. 

Lille managed a win over FC Sochaux-Montbéliard on Monday but it was a narrow 1-0 victory against a relegation threatened Ligue 2 side. Luiz Araujo’s nifty header gave his side the win but it definitely wasn’t the performance desired from Christophe Galtier as his side have looked shaky recently and are in dire need of a morale boost. Lille won eight of their opening 11 matches of the season but have only won three of the last ten as les Dogues have faltered in recent performances  with poor defeats to Toulouse, Strasbourg and Nice. They have been alright for goals with nine in their last six but the performances just haven’t been as confident as they were at the start of the season. 

Lille have an extremely mixed away record with them winning and losing four of their last eight on the road but Caen have a pretty dire reputation at home with them winning just two of their last eight at the Stade Michel D’Ornano. Both teams have scored in all of Caen’s last five Ligue 1 matches and four of Lille’s last five. Only one of the recent clashes have seen over 2.5 goals scored and we expect this to continue as we’re backing a 1-1 draw here. Lille are slipping in quality while Caen have really upped their game recently and we expect these teams to cancel each other out here after les Dogues failed to even convincingly beat a Ligue 2 side.