Bordeaux vs. FC Nantes 8/21/20 Ligue 1 Soccer Pick, Odds, and Prediction

Bordeaux is hosting FC Nantes in the opening game of the new season in French Ligue 1 at Matmut Atlantique

Bordeaux has played 4 friendly games in the preseason, and they have won only 1 while losing 1 and tying 2 games. During this stretch, Bordeaux has scored 7 goals, while conceding 5 goals. With the last season ending early due to the Covid-19 pandemic, Bordeaux has ended the season in 12th place with 37 points, 40 scored goals, and 34 conceded goals. Bordeaux wasn’t bad last season, and they had a chance of getting to the Europa League spot, but the season was canceled. Pablo is the only injured player for Bordeaux, and unfortunately for him, he will miss the beginning of the season. There have been a few outgoing transfers from Bordeaux in the offseason, but mostly the players that came back from a loan. There haven’t been any incoming transfers in Bordeaux, but the transfer window is still open, and Bordeaux still has a chance to bring in some reinforcements. It’s never easy to judge a team’s form just by friendly games, but I think Bordeaux will have a tough season, and I expect them to be somewhere in the top half of the standings, not quite in the Europa League, but close.

Nantes has been great in the preseason with 2 wins and 1 draw, 9 scored goals, and only 1 conceded goal. Last season wasn’t great for Nantes, and they have scored only 28 goals in 28 games, but their defense was solid with only 31 conceded goals. This was enough for 13th place where Nantes ended the season. Nantes still had a chance to get to the Europa League, but I don’t think they would have since there were a few better teams that were in the run. Nantes was active on the market in the offseason, and the biggest news is the arrival of od Simon Moses from Levante for 5 million Euros. Castelleto and Chirivella arrived for free. There weren’t any important departures from Nantes just yet. At the moment, there are no injuries or suspensions in Nantes. Over the last few seasons, Nantes has had some good moments, and they were always lurking around somewhere close to the Europa League, and maybe if the last season wasn’t canceled, they would have been able to get there. With the exception of the top 4 teams in Ligue 1, the rest of the competition is pretty even, and my expectations for Nantes are pretty much the same as Bordeaux’s, somewhere in the middle of the standings.

When playing at home, Bordeaux has not lost to Nantes in their last 4 games, and the trends are on the Bordeaux side in this matchup. Bordeaux and Nantes are pretty evenly matched teams, and I think that the season opener might end in a draw.