Ligue 1 Betting: Marseille to kick on after Evra's karate drama

Monaco v Guingamp (2nd v 11th)
Sat, 19:00 GMT
Live on BT Sport 3 and Betfair Live Video

Monaco may not be blazing a trail in quite the same way they did last season but they're still one of France's top sides and should win comfortably this weekend.

To some degree the Ligue 1 champions are still absorbing the summer departures of Benjamin Mendy, Timeoue Bakayoko, Bernardo Silva and Kylian Mbappe but they're a cut above all Ligue 1 sides other than PSG and have run into good form.

Monaco are unbeaten in their last three games in all competitions (W2-D1-L0) and have generally impressed at home this season. They're W4-D1-L0 at Stade Louis II and have a +11 goal difference across those five matches.

Visitors Guingamp are an unremarkable side likely to finish in mid-table this season. They've won just one of their last six matches and their away record is a disappointing W1-D0-L4. Their sole away victory came at bottom club Metz (3-1) so there's nothing to suggest they'll trouble Monaco this weekend.

With Monaco short-priced favourites (1.40) we prefer the hosts on the Half Time/Full Time market. Monaco have scored more than half their Ligue 1 goals in the first-halves of games this season so we can expect the hosts to get off to a speedy start.

Recommended Bet
Monaco-Monaco Half Time/Full Time @ 2.20

Metz v Lille (20th v 19th)
Sun, 16:00 GMT
Live on Betfair Live Video

This is Frederic Hantz's first game as Metz manager and his shrewd apppointment ought to inspire an improvement in Ligue 1's bottom club.

Metz are rooted to the foot of the table after losing 10 of their opening 11 Ligue 1 matches so it was no surprise Hantz's predecessor Philippe Hinschberger was given his marching orders a couple of weeks ago.

The decision to appoint Hantz should prove a smart one as the 51-year-old has a fine track record. In 2012, he led Bastia back into Ligue 1 via consecutive promotions and then secured two solid mid-table Ligue 1 finishes while in charge of the Corsicans. A couple of seasons ago he took on a firefighting role at Montpellier, saving the club from relegation in impressive fashion.

Metz are a limited side but not quite as poor as results have suggested. There is room for improvement, and we should see more intense, motivated performances from the players now that they'll be enjoying better leadership on a daily and weekly basis.

Lille's winless streak grew to 10 matches in all competitions (W0-D4-L6) when they lost 1-0 at home to Marseille last weekend. Lille played well on the night, but their glaring lack of quality in front of goal is a massive problem. The squad lacking a single rleiable goalscorer, and until this issue's addressed Marcelo Bielsa's side will continue to drop points.

Metz are clear underdogs, which presents a betting opportunity. With our selection you'll make a profit if Metz win or the game ends in a draw.

For a full guide to Asian Handicap betting, click here.

Recommended Bet
Metz +0&+0.5 Asian Handicap @ 1.80

Marseille v Caen (4th v 7th)
Sun, 16:00 GMT
Live on BT Sport 3 and Betfair Live Video

Marseille's preparations for this game have been overshadowed by Patrice Evra's karate kick on a Marseille fan before their Europa league fixture at Vitoria Guimaraes on Thursday night but Rudi Garcia's hosts are still a good bet to overcome the Asian Handicap and enjoy a comfortable win on Sunday afternoon.

Evra landed a kick on the jaw of a Marseille supporter after arguing and clashing with fans that were barracking him during the warm-up ahead of the game in Portugal. He's now likely to be handed a lengthy ban and may be sacked by Marseille, and it's not surprising the incident has dominated the news pages ahead of this game.

Yet Evra's antics shouldn't cloud the fact that Marseille go into the game in good domestic form and stand a very good chance of winning. They're unbeaten in their last six Ligue 1 outings (W4-D2-L0), have good team news and will be confident of overcoming limited visitors.

Caen have lost two of their last three Ligue 1 fixtures without scoring a goal and were a bit lucky to beat Troyes (1-0) last weekend. They're riding high in the table but that position's false as their good run of results in late August and September included a couple of lucky wins.

Marseille are 1.42 to win so we prefer the Asian Handicap. With our selection you'll get your stakes back if Marseille win by a single goal and make a profit if the hosts win by two or more goals.

Recommended Bet
Marseille -1 Asian Handicap @ 1.90