PSG Face Tricky Test on Road at Lille

Game: LOSC Lille vs Paris Saint-Germain F.C.

Location: Stade Pierre Mauroy, Villeneuve-d’Ascq, France

Date/Time: Sunday, 2:45 p.m. ET

Lille vs PSG Betting Preview

Head to Head

Lille and PSG met in Ligue 1 back in October as PSG secured a 2-1 come-from-behind victory. Jonathan David opened up the scoring for the visitors but Marquinhos and Angel di Maria’s late goals were enough for PSG to get all three points.

To kick off the season, Lille did defeat PSG 1-0 in the Trophee des Champions. In the last five meetings, both teams have two wins and have drawn.

Lille Needing a Spark

Brest ended Lille’s nine-game Ligue 1 unbeaten run a couple weeks back as Les Dogues fell 2-0. It was Lille’s first loss in all competitions since October. The defending champions haven’t put up much of a title challenge this season and simply haven’t scored enough goals to do so.

Jonathan David has been excellent this season and is also leading Canada’s World Cup charge but Lille have perhaps over-relied on him for scoring output. Burak Yilmaz defied father time last season with 16 goals but the Turkish international has found the net just four times in Ligue 1 this season.

Lille made an interesting move in the transfer market by bringing in winger Hatem Ben Arfa on a free. The 34-year old was without a club since the summer but Les Dogues will be hoping he’s still capable of the moments of individual brilliance that he’s known for. Lille also signed winger Edon Zhegrova from Basel to add some creativity in attacking areas.

Most crucially, Lille kept Renato Sanches and Sven Botman, who were both wanted by some of Europe’s biggest clubs. With the duo, Lille should be able to challenge for a European place and be one of the better Ligue 1 soccer picks, even if they’re out of the title race already.

Currently, in 11th, Lille are just three points out of fourth and a good run of results could propel them up the table.

Another Failure for Poch and PSG

Messi’s return to the starting lineup after his COVID recovery was spoiled as PSG were bounced from the Coupe de France in penalties by Nice. The Parisians, who were missing multiple players to international duty and injury, couldn’t get on the scoresheet as the match finished in a scoreless draw.

The latest cup failure from Mauricio Pochettino prompted rumors that he could be sacked soon and replaced by Zinedine Zidane. Pochettino has won just one trophy since he took over as PSG manager ahead of the 2020-21 season, although that figures to change this season barring a complete collapse.

In Ligue 1, PSG have two consecutive wins and most recently destroyed Reims by a 4-0 scoreline. Midfielder Marco Verratti scored a rare double as Sergio Ramos also scored his first goal for the club and Danilo Pereira added a fourth. The Parisians have kept three straight shutouts in all competitions and have been a good soccer betting pick on unders this season.

Neymar won’t be available this weekend but the mercurial Brazilian is closing in on a return from a long term ankle injury. He joins Sergio Ramos and Georginio Wijnaldum on the injury list as Idrissa Gueye and Abdou Diallo compete for Senegal in the African Cup of Nations final.

Prediction

You’d expect PSG to be motivated following a cup exit, but there seems to be a strange atmosphere surrounding this PSG side. Despite their league position, they haven’t been at their best all season and their big three of Messi, Neymar and Mbappe still aren’t all together.

Lille have done well vs PSG in recent seasons and they should be able to nick a result at home. Bet on them to cover the ½-goal spread in the sportsbook.

Pick: Lille +½ (-115)