Bitesize Prediction: Nantes vs Lens – 01/03/23

Competition: Coupe de France

Market: Lens win

Odds: 5/6 @ 888sport

Two sides who will turn their attention back to Coupe de France duties on Wednesday evening, Nantes will welcome Lens to the Stade de la Beaujoire.

Starting with the hosts, while Nantes might have opened their Europa League knockout stage adventure with a rugged display away at Italian giants Juventus on February 16th, Les Canaris are enduring an extended struggle. Eventually crashing out of Europe following a 3-0 drumming at home against the Old Lady last week, Antonie Kombouare’s side have now lost each of their last three matchups across all formats. Along with being last seen over the weekend putting in a toothless performance as they slumped to a 1-0 loss at home against Rennes, Rennes were also hit with a 3-1 defeat when they made the trip to Lens for a Ligue 1 showdown on February 19th. Facing what should be another tough meeting against Wednesday’s Coupe de France rivals, Kombouare should also have a headache over his side’s continued problems on home soil. Including last weekend’s 1-0 loss against Rennes, it should be noted that Les Canaris have recorded just a single victory at the Stade de la Beaujoire since New Year’s Day.

As for the visitors, although Lens might have been disappointed after settling for a 1-1 draw away at Montpellier last weekend, Franck Haise’s side have only continued to impress everyone across France this season. Although Le Racing might have slipped away from what would have been a famous title charge in 2023, they still have a stunning Champions League ticket at the top of their agenda. Remarkably suffering just a pair of domestic defeats across all competitions since getting hit with a 1-0 defeat away at Lille on October 9th, Lens will be desperate to extend on their Coupe de France adventure with another flurry on the road. While Haise might be calling on his side to find some recent defensive resolve after failing to record a clean sheet since the middle of January, the midweek guests will be boosted by that rampant previous meeting against Nantes. Landing a 3-1 romp when the two sides met a fortnight ago, we’re backing a similar outcome here.

Bet: Lens 5/6 to beat Nantes in Wednesday’s Coupe de France tie @ 888sport