STRASBOURG welcome Nice on Saturday night for the hosts' first Ligue 1 clash of the season. Marcus Ally (@Marcus_Ally_4) oversees the encounter.
Strasbourg vs Nice| Saturday 29th August 2020, 20:00 | BT Sport
Strasbourg host Nice on Saturday evening, looking to get their season up and running after a disappointing 3-1 defeat at newly-promoted Lorient in their opening match. The visitors, Nice, who finished fifth last term, got off to the perfect start, much the opposite to the hosts as they beat Lens 2-1, the other side promoted from Ligue 2 in 2019/20.
Having said that, it was not straightforward and Patrick Vieira’s men relied a little too heavily on new signing Amine Gouiri, who bagged a brace on his debut for the club.
The usually entertaining Racers are strong favourites but are still odds-against to get the three points, still drifting at 13/10 best price with Novibet at the time of writing.
Good omens for the hosts
Strasbourg have been on level terms, or ahead, at half-time in their last 12 Ligue 1 encounters. However, that has not necessarily translated to strong form with 11 of the last 12 goals they have conceded coming after the 50th minute.
Since the side’s promotion to the top-flight in 2016/17 they are unbeaten against the Eagles at Stade de la Meinau, winning twice and drawing once.
Last time out
Having discussed Nice in last week’s preview of their match with Lens, let’s look into how Strasbourg got on. The team will want to improve on last season’s 11th placed finish. They did, however, end up ninth in the Expected Goals (xG) table compared to Nice’s 13th, according to Understat.
It was a lacklustre display, to say the least, against Lorient. They created just 0.33 xG compared to Lorient’s 3.07 with 0.19/0.33 coming in the first 87 minutes. They do though have a knack of getting on the scoresheet, despite that performance with 12 total goals coming in their last three outings.
Given Nice’s poor defensive record both last term and in their first match, a Both Teams To Score punt looks a very safe bet at a best price of 5/6 with GentingBet. Though Vieira’s men were victorious against Lens, they actually lost the xG battle 0.18-3.04 with Infogol, giving the 2-1 scoreline a fairness rating of just 33.8%.
Lyon academy graduate, Amine Gouiri whipped two wonderful right footed efforts to the keeper’s left to drag the Eagles to victory after going a goal down to a Gael Kakuta penalty. A lot is to be expected of Gouiri, 20, this season now he gone off like a jet, leading the goalscoring charts after just one match.
The betting angles
Both Teams To Score looks nailed on as mentioned above, also getting onside with Strasbourg in the outright win or double chance market is advisable.
Often when a team comes out the fortunate side of a result as Nice did last weekend, a repeat performance will not reap the same rewards. The Racers have good memories of this fixture and opening day defeat will spur them on more to get some points on the board.
Therefore, I'll look to Strasbourg Double Chance and Both Teams To Score (11/8 Betway) and Strasbourg to win and Both Teams To Score (15/4 Bet365) as potential plays here.
Best Bets
Strasbourg vs Nice – Strasbourg Double Chance and Both Teams To Score (11/8 Betway)
Strasbourg vs Nice – Strasbourg to win and Both Teams To Score (15/4 Bet365)
