AS Monaco vs. FC Nantes 8/6/21 Ligue 1 Soccer Pick, Odds, and Prediction

AS Monaco is hosting FC Nantes at Stade Louis II in the season opener of the French Ligue 1. Monaco has had a solid last season, and they have started their Champions League qualifications with a nice win. Nantes has barely survived last season, and their preseason wasn’t much better.

As I’ve mentioned, Monaco has had a solid last season, more than solid probably, and they ended in 3^rd place, which was enough for the Champions League qualifications. Monaco was also only 5 points from the top of the table. As far as the preseason goes, Monaco has played 5 games, and they have lost only 1 while winning 3 games. In the Champions League qualifications, Monaco was facing Sparta Prague earlier this week, and they have had 50% of ball possession, 6 shots on goal, 4 corner kicks, and 79% of the correct passes. With 1 scored goal in each half, Monaco has won this game 0-2, and they now have a nice advantage ahead of the second leg. There hasn’t been a lot of arrivals or departures in Monaco so far, but players they have signed will be a nice addition to Niko Kovac’s roster. I think Monaco is good enough to fight for the Champions League once again, and they are good enough to fight for the title as well.

Nantes has ended last season in the relegation playoff spot, and they have barely, and I mean barely survived those playoffs. In the first leg, Nantes has beaten Toulouse on the road 1-2, while losing at home in the second leg 0-1, and the only reason they stayed in Ligue 1 is the away goal from the first leg. In the preseason, Nantes has played 6 games, they lost 4, while winning 2 games. Nantes hasn’t brought in players that could help them have a better season than the last one, at least not yet, and they are my favorites to get relegated this season. in those 6 preseason games, Nantes has conceded 6 goals, but the good news is they have kept 1 clean sheet. Offensively, Nantes has scored in only 3 preseason games, and they have scored 5 goals in total. Nantes has scored a decent number of goals last season, 47 in total, but their defense was just terrible with 55 conceded goals, and even though that was the least of the bottom 6 teams, it was just too much for Nantes to be better. Nantes has also been very inconsistent last season, and as we can see from their preseason results, they still are.

Nantes hasn’t won any of their last 6 games against Monaco, while Monaco hasn’t lost in their last 7 home games against Nantes. The trends are heavily on Monaco’s side in this match, and they are clearly the better team. It’s important to start the season with a win, especially the home win, and that is exactly what Monaco will do here.