Angers have their worst team news of the season. No fewer than five of their ideal 10 outfield starting players are missing. Left-back Andreu, powerful midfielder Ndoye and ideal front trio Ketkeophomphone, Diedhiou and Toko Ekambi are all ruled out. Several useful squad players are missing, too, further reducing manager Stephane Moulin’s options. The players available for this game have scored just one Ligue 1 goal between them all season. That shows just what a massive task Angers face to improve on the dreadful run of form they had at the end of 2016 (W1-D0-L5).
Bordeaux will go into this game in a positive frame of mind after winning two domestic cup ties over the past week. They were 1-0 winners at Ligue 2 side Clermont in the French Cup last weekend and then beat Guingamp 3-2 in the League Cup on Wednesday night. The visitors are below-strength in two positions. Goalkeeper Carrasso is still out and striker Menez is sidelined as well. The latter is a minor loss, however: Bordeaux have attacked well and scored goals without him on occasion this season. Against severely depleted hosts, a point is the least Bordeaux will expect from this match. Going into the fixture in good form, they may well be a little more positive than they have been in away games in recent times.
Verdict & Prediction
The mood in the Bordeaux camp should be upbeat after making a good start to 2017. They ran out 1-0 winners at Ligue 2 Clermont in the French Cup last weekend and followed up with a 3-2 home win over Guingamp in the League Cup on Wednesday night. They’ll expect a difficult match but will also draw confidence from the fact that Angers are severely depleted owing to injuries and players being on duty at the Africa Cup of Nations.
Prediction : Bordeaux +0.00 AH (same as Draw no bet)
Odds: 1.89 SBOBET
