Nice – Montpellier Prediction & Picks (22.04.2018)

Nice and Montpellier meet at Allianz Riviera, in a match for the 34 th round of League 1. Montpellier won at home by (2-0) the last time they met in this edition of the league, at 15-10- 2017 In this stadium, the history of direct confrontations is favorable to the home team, which records 2 wins and 1 draw in the last 3 matches. In fact, the last time these two teams played a match in this stadium was on 02-24-2017, in a match for the League 1 that ended in the Nice victory by (2-1). The goals of the match were scored by M. Le Bihan (68 ‘e 85’), for Nice, and S. Mounié (9 ‘), for Montpellier. In this game the home factor may be decisive, since Montpellier presents considerable differences in their results at home and as a visitor.

Nice:

The home team is currently in the 6 th position of the league, with 47 points won, after 13 wins, 8 draws and 12 losses. In the penultimate match, they tied in a home match against Rennes, by (1-1). In the last match, they tied in an away match against Angers, by (1-1). This is a team that usually maintains its competitive levels in home and away matches, since in the last 30 matches they register 4 wins, 6 draws and 5 losses in away matches, with 20 goals scored and 18 conceded; against 7 wins, 2 draws and 6 losses at their stadium, with 19 goals scored and 20 conceded. For the championship, Nice won 17 points out of 30 possible, after 5 wins, 2 draws and 3 losses in the last 10 home matches. The team has conceded goals in 8 of the last 10 matches, so they have not presented great defensive solidity, but their offense has scored consistently, as they have scored goals in 8 of the last 10 matches for this competition. In 33 matches in the competition, they suffered the first goal 15 times and only managed 3 comebacks. There is 1 period that stands out in the last 17 home matches for this competition: they have suffered 8 of their 22 goals between minutes (16’-30 ‘).

Nice has already won the French Championship four times, but all titles were won many years ago, the most recent being in the 1958/59 season. In the current season, Nice is fighting to stay at the top of the table of the French Championship, but no longer has chances to qualify for a European competition, since it is nineteen points behind the fourth qualifier, the Marseille Olympic. Among the offensive features of the Nice, are the off-field shots and the use of the individual ability to define the attacking plays. In the last five games of Nice at home, in all the team scored goals. We believe that in this game, by playing against a direct opponent for the first positions, the Nice will start for the attack against Montpellier and has all the conditions to emerge victorious from this confrontation.

Montpellier:

The away team is currently in the 7 th position of the league, with 46 points won, after 10 wins, 16 draws and 7 losses. In the penultimate match, they tied in an away match against Olympique Marseille, by (0-0). In the last match, they lost in a home match against Bordeaux, by (1-3). This is a team that usually gets better results in away matches than at home, since in the last 30 matches they register 5 wins, 8 draws and 2 losses in away matches, with 13 goals scored and 11 conceded; against 5 wins, 6 draws and 4 losses at their stadium, with 24 goals scored and 21 suffered. In the last 10 away matches for the championship, Montpellier has 3 wins, 6 draws and 1 loss, so they have won 15 points out of 30 possible. In their home league matches the most frequent result at half-time was the 0-0 (6 out of 16 matches). They have not been very strong defensively, since they have suffered goals in 7 of the last 10 matches, but their offense has scored frequently, since they have scored goals in 8 of the last 10 matches for this competition. In their away matches there is a tendency for few goals, since 13 of the last 16 matches have ended with Under 2,5 goals. In 33 matches in this competition, they only won 2 comebacks in the 13 matches in which they suffered the first goal. In the last 16 home matches for this competition there is 1 period that stands out: they have conceded 5 of their 12 goals between minutes (31′-45 ‘).

Montpellier is a club that has already won the French championship, in the 2011/12 season. Now, in the season of 2017/18, the team has been making a good campaign, since it currently occupies the seventh position, but without possibilities of reaching the qualification for the Europa League.