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Saturday sees Reims play host to Saint-Etienne in a Ligue 1 showdown at the Stade Auguste-Delaune.
Reims are currently sitting in 14th place on the table, while Saint-Etienne are propping up the rest from the bottom.
Can Reims condemn the visitors to further difficulties this weekend?
Reims vs Saint-Etienne Head-to-Head
Reims’ form has been up and down throughout the 2021-22 campaign, and just as they looked to be on a strong run, they were defeated by Angers 1-2 last weekend.
Reims remain one of Ligue 1’s lowest-scoring sides, as with just 19 goals thus far, they are one of only six sides to not break the 20-goal mark.
However, with 21 goals conceded, they can also boast the bottom half’s tightest defense – meaning that if they can find the net more often, they could well move up the table.
Saint-Etienne, on the other hand, are already in a relegation battle despite the season only being 17 matches old.
They have won just twice in this campaign and have suffered nine defeats. More worryingly, they have leaked 37 goals – giving them an average of two goals conceded per game.
Claude Puel’s side are currently on a three-match losing streak, and most recently fell to high-flying Rennes, suffering an embarrassing 0-5 defeat.
Worryingly for the visitors, they do not have a strong record against Reims either. In their last six meetings, they’ve defeated their hosts just twice.
Reims form guide: D-D-W-W-L
Saint-Etienne form guide: W-W-L-L-L
Reims vs Saint-Etienne Team News
Reims
Reims will be without a total of seven players for this game, with two suspended and five on the injured list.
Injured: Marshall Munetsi, Moreto Cassama, Fode Doucoure, Fraser Hornby, Arber Zeneli
Doubtful: None
Suspended: Valon Berisha, Yunis Abdelhamid
Saint-Etienne
Three players are expected to miss out on this match for the visitors, all due to injury.
Injured: Aimen Moueffek, Romain Hamouma, Yvan Neyou
Doubtful: None
Suspended: None
Reims vs Saint-Etienne Predicted XI
Reims predicted XI (3-4-3): Predrag Rajkovic, Andreaw Gravillon, Wout Faes, Ghislain Konan, Thomas Foket, Dion Lopy, Azor Matusiwa, Ilan Kebbal, El Bilal Toure, Hugo Ekitike, Nathanael Mbuku
Saint-Etienne predicted XI (4-4-2): Etienne Green, Yvann Macon, Saidou Sow, Harold Moukoudi, Timothee Kolodziejczak, Zaydou Youssouf, Lucas Gourna-Douath, Mahdi Camara, Denis Bouanga, Jean-Phillipe Krasso, Wahbi Khazri
Reims vs Saint-Etienne Prediction
Reims have a lot of players out for this game and may need to tweak their system slightly, but they will still be favored to pick up a win here.
Saint-Etienne’s form has been absolutely diabolical of late and their loss to Rennes last week was a new low for Claude Puel’s side.
They likely won’t be as bad this weekend, but Reims will still be confident of picking up a win, and we predict a home victory.
Prediction: Reims 2-0 Saint-Etienne
