Big blow for the Lille coach Jocelyn Gourvennec who will be deprived in Nantes of Botman hit in a gluteal muscle. The Dutch should miss the next 2 weeks of competition. Djalo should therefore start in central defense since it seems that Celik, who felt a gene in the psoas on Wednesday evening, should be able to hold his place on the lawn of Beaujoire.
The statement: “No demotivation.”
Midfielder Amadou Onana is convinced that he and his teammates will manage to bounce back from Saturday night against Nantes: “Everyone has a clear objective in mind, to win a European place. It will also do you good to only play once a week. Playing every 3 days for the last 5 months, it was not easy, it requires a lot of physical and mental effort. There is no demotivation. We all know our end goal.”
Player to watch: Jonathan David
The tireless Canadian striker will play his 50th match in all competitions tonight. This season with LOSC he has only missed one match, the derby lost in the round of 16 against Lens on penalties. After this meeting in Nantes, he will once again take the plane to cross the Atlantic and join his selection which should next week win his ticket for the World Cup in Qatara first for Canada since participating in the World Cup in 1986.
The stat: 5 games without defeat in L1
The Mastiffs have found real defensive solidity in L1. Jardim, who took over from Grbic, hasn’t conceded a single goal in his last 5 outings. LOSC has therefore been undefeated since February 12. The last failure of Gourvennec’s men dates back to February 6 when PSG came to win 5-1 at Pierre Mauroy. This is not the best series of Lille this season. They had chained 9 games without defeat between November 6, 2021 and January 19, 2022.
The composition France Bleu Nord: Without Botman
Jardim – Celik Fonte Djalo Gudmundsson – Weah André Xeka Bamba – David Ben Arfa