Ligue 1 Matchday 2 Odds & Picks: Reims Defense Will Make Lille Stutter

• After a short summer break, France’s Ligue 1 is back in action with the second matchday taking place over the weekend
• Ligue 1’s second round of matchups features some key games as Rennes host Montpellier and Reims take on Lille in what would have been a top-six matchup last year
• PSG has a longer break due to their participation in the Champions League Final in Lisbon, while Marseille who were supposed to take on Stade Brest, are battling their own Covid-19 outbreak

Domestic leagues are quickly getting back into action, and most Ligue 1 teams in France already have a game under their belts. Nice and Angers started off the season well with respective victories against Lens and Strasbourg. Meanwhile, lower level Nimes and Lorient also started off with wins to start their Ligue 1 campaign. Monaco, Reims, Lille, Rennes, Nantes and Bordeaux all have a point in the table with draws in the first matchday.

The beginning of this Ligue 1 season will be especially interesting given the Covid-19 circumstances and the lack of a break all of these sides are facing. For example, Lyon could find it quite difficult early to get over their Champions League hangover and start a new season so quickly. This will give mid-to-top level teams like Nice, Angers, and Rennes a better shot at competing this year.

Ligue 1 Matchday 2 Odds

All odds taken Aug. 26

Ligue 1 Pick 1: Rennes vs Montpellier

Firstly, Rennes and Montpellier makes for a cracking game of French football. The two sides last year finished 3rd and 8th respectively and have some quality talent. For Rennes, watch out for M’Baye Niang, who scored ten goals last season and was the main source of attack for one of Ligue 1’s finest teams.

Additionally, it is imperative to remember the Ligue 1 season got cut short last year. Many of these sides just played club friendlies and will not be necessarily up to speed quite yet. Rennes won the past two games against Montpellier by a combined score of 6-0, and history will repeat itself with +104 odds for a Rennes win this weekend.

Pick: Rennes moneyline (+104)

Ligue 1 Pick 2: Reims vs Lille

Reims against Lille is another Ligue 1 highlight for the weekend. Both of these teams were in the top four last season but one of them will be without one of their key goalscorers. Lille lost Victor Osimhen to Napoli which will be devastating for them.

Lille will need to figure how the rest of their attack will function against a Reims team that had the best defense in France last season. Their side conceded only 21 goals in 28 games, which is absolutely sublime, and is why they should be favored this weekend, even if they are the current underdogs.

Pick: Reims moneyline (+200) 

Ligue 1 Pick 3: Monaco vs Metz

Finally, we have Monaco traveling away to Metz to cap off the second matchday in Ligue 1. Here, we have two mid-table teams looking to turn things around in the new season. These two teams had some of the worst defenses in France last year. In fact, Monaco gave up 44, good enough for the fourth-worst record in Ligue 1.

Captain fantastic 🙌 pic.twitter.com/LHZqlZoNmH

— AS Monaco EN (@AS_Monaco_EN) August 26, 2020

Their last two matchups had three and four total goals respectively, which leads to believe this game will hit the ‘Over’ on total goals at 2.5. Both of these teams will be super rusty which makes it a little hard to predict the outcome, given how they have not really improved either of their squads over the summer. The odds of +100 on the ‘Over’ is worthwhile and a very likely choice.

Pick: Over 2.5 Total Goals (+100)