Tonight Reims will host Montpellier at Stade Auguste-Delaune in Reims, hoping to bounce back from their recent defeat against Amiens (4:1) and get their 3rd win of the season.
Reims, as mentioned before has suffered a huge defeat against Amiens (4:1), which could be linked to playing with only 10 men since the 1st half. The decision of sending Mentenire off was a bit harsh in my opinion, but that’s just the way it was. Going into this fixture, Reims will be playing without Mentanire and new singing Foket, which means Disasi will need to fill the gap. That could spell trouble for Reims, at least in this area. In addition, Martin, and experienced playmaker is out as well which means Reims will lack some technical quality. On the bright side, they have all players available in other positions. Reims as a team is playing well under David Guion, as 6 points in the opening 3 games is a decent result.
The visiting team, Montpellier are currently at 12th position in the league with 4 points accumulated thus far. They have lost the opening match against much improved Dijon (1:2), won their 2nd game against Amiens (1:2) and draw their most recent match against St Etienne (0:0). Looking at how they play, I simply don’t see any spectacular performances coming from them. However I must mention, Montpellier are playing well on the road, losing only 4 away games in the last 20. On the other side, 9 out of those 20 matches ended in a draw. It’s clear that Montpellier relies more on their defence to grab them points than their attack, thus so many matches ending in a draw. It seems like their no.1 priority in away games is getting a draw and I do expect them to do the same here. If they can keep their goal untouched this match could easily end up in a draw, however, a goal from the opposition might cause some problems, as Montpellier attack has not proven themselves thus far (3 goals in 3 matches).
Verdict & Prediction
Neither of the teams really stands out here. As mentioned, I expect Montpellier to try and get a draw here, and they just might achieve that. But as mentioned before, an early goal from Reims would cause a lot of problems for Montpellier achieving a draw. Reims has lost their last match badly, but keep in mind, they played without 1 defender and, we simply can not blame them for the end result there. The home advantage and drive to bounce back after the defeat against Amiens are enough for me to believe Reims will come out as a winner, or at least get a point.
Prediction: Reims +0.00 Asian Handicap (same as Draw no bet option)
Odds: 1.87
