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Ligue 1 Preview: Strugglers Guingamp and Bastia face off

SoccerNews in Ligue 1 30 Oct 2014

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Bottom side Guingamp will look to exploit any fatigue in Bastia’s squad when the Ligue 1 strugglers meet on Saturday.

Jocelyn Gourvennec’s side seek a welcome three points against 18th-placed Bastia at the Stade du Roudourou this weekend, with a win possibly enough to lift them out of the drop zone.

Bastia, who only have two league wins this term, could be at a physical disadvantage having beaten Auxerre 3-1 in the Coupe de la Ligue on Tuesday.

Head coach Claude Makelele was unhappy with his team’s performance in that victory and stated that they will be punished for a repeat performance in the league.

“The attitude of some of my players was disappointing,” he said. “I have to stay behind them but also give them a rap over the knuckles.

“The most important thing is that we qualified. I just have to get it through to the lads that they can’t play like that in Ligue 1.”

Evian are also in the relegation zone. A 2-1 defeat to Lorient in the Coupe de la Ligue in midweek was their third straight competitive loss and they travel to a Montpellier side going through a lean spell of their own.

Montpellier have just one win in their last seven outings in all competitions and, after losing 1-0 to Ajaccio in cup action, coach Rolland Courbis is seeking a swift reply.

“We’re going through a rough patch and nothing is going how we planned,” he said. “It’s up to me to find the solutions. We’ll do all we can to have an excellent Ligue 1 match against Evian on Saturday.”

League leaders Marseille suffered just their second defeat of the season in a 1-0 reverse at in-form Lyon last Sunday and Marcelo Bielsa’s side seek an instant return to winning ways against lowly Lens at the Stade Velodrome on Sunday.

Sunday also sees Nantes and Bordeaux face home matches with Rennes and Toulouse.

Lyon’s triumph over Marseille allowed Hubert Fournier’s side climb to third and extend their unbeaten Ligue 1 run to seven matches.

Next up is a trip to the Allianz Riviera to face Nice, who will hope for more of the same from Carlos Eduardo. Midfielder Eduardo netted five times in last weekend’s 7-2 win at Guingamp to mark the first time a player has scored a quintuple of goals in a single game in France’s top flight since 1984.

Two penalties from Lucas Moura helped defending champions Paris Saint-Germain comfortably defeat Bordeaux 3-0 last weekend.

That win saw PSG move within four points of top spot and they will be confident of continuing their momentum at Lorient.

Also on Saturday, Saint-Etienne and Caen visit Lille and Metz respectively, while on Friday Monaco face Reims.

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