Friday night thriller to start weekend
Lens vs Troyes (3rd vs 11th)
Fri, 20:00 BST
Live on BT Sport 2 and Betfair Live Video
The start of this Ligue 1 season has been historically high-scoring and the Lens vs Troyes fixture that will kick-off the latest matchday on Friday night looks set to be part of that trend.
We're averaging 3.30 goals a game in the French top flight at the moment - making it the highest-scoring of Europe's Big Five leagues - and the strengths and weaknesses of these two sides are perfectly suited to the current pattern.
The six games Lens have played so far have averaged 3.66 goals a game, while Troyes' six matches have generated an even higher average of 4.17 goals a game. The average Expected Goals figure across the 12 matches involving these two sides is 3.24.
The way the game is set-up ought to encourage Lens to attack. They're W4-D2-L0 so far and, at home to lower-ranking opponents, will be confident of claiming another victory. A positive performance is highly likely in front of a 37,000 sell-out crowd.
Troyes' defending has been erratic this season so they're unlikely to hold out for long. At the other end things have improved, however - they've scored eight times in their last three matches - so they'll be confident of breaching a Lens back line that has conceded in five of their six games to date.
Over 2.5 & 3.0 on the Goal Lines market is available at close to evens. With this selection, you'll make a profit as long as there are three goals in the game.
More misery in store for Ajaccio
Ajaccio vs Nice (20th vs 16th)
Sun, 14:00 BST
Live on BT Sport 3 and Betfair Live Video
We opposed Ajaccio when they played at home to Lorient last weekend and are happy to do the same thing this weekend.
The promoted Corsicans look Ligue 1's most limited side and their struggle to pick up points is set to continue on Sunday afternoon.
They did extremely well to make it into the top flight but lacked the finance and pulling power to strengthen during the most recent transfer window.
As a result, Ajaccio are essentially playing in Ligue 1 with a Ligue 2 standard side and that explains why they've picked up just one point from their opening six matches.
Nice are in something of a state of chaos right now having signed more important players towards the end of the transfer window than any other team.
Kasper Schmeichel, Mattia Viti, Mads Bech Sorensen, Joe Bryan, Alexis Beka Beak, Aaron Ramsey, Ross Barkley, Sofiane Diop, Nicolas Pepe and Gaetan Laborde are the new names and collectively they should eventually improve the side.
All 10 arrived after pre-season, however, so it will be several weeks and maybe even months before manager Lucien Favre turns them into a smoothly functioning unit.
Yet there's enough individual quality in the Nice ranks for the visitors to win even if they're below their best.
Ajaccio are so limited the pure individual talent in the Nice squad should ensure the visitors avoid defeat at the very least.
With our selection, you'll lose half your stakes if the game ends all-square and make a profit if Nice win. For a full guide to Asian Handicap betting, click here.
Goals-fest in Angers
Angers vs Montpellier (19th vs 7th)
Sun, 14:00 BST
Live on Betfair Live Video
These are two more of the sides that have played a full role in Ligue 1 being a high-scoring league this season and we're happy to back their match to have Over 2.5 Goals.
Angers have the division's worst defensive record with 17 goals conceded in six matches and Montpellier's back line has been leaky, too.
Angers' matches are averaging 3.83 goals a game while Montpellier's are averaging an even higher 4.67 goals a game.
Over 2.5 Goals has paid out in 10 of these sides' combined 12 games so far this season and the market appears to have underrated the chances of a similar outcome this weekend.
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