Competition: Ligue 1
Market: Both teams score
Opportunities: 4/6 @1xBet
Toulouse, two teams looking to secure a place in the first half this season, welcome Montpellier to the Stadium Municipal on Friday evening.
Let’s start with the hosts: While Toulouse may have opened 2024 in the midst of a real battle for Ligue 1, Les Violets have returned in some capacity. Carles Novell’s men are rapidly climbing up the table and finding a way into the top half. The mood in their camp is likely to be high. Most recently, the former Barcelona coach celebrated a dramatic comeback in the second half in Lorient and won there 2-1. In the five games so far, his team has not suffered a single defeat. Toulouse made a real statement with an excellent 2-1 away win at Rennes last month and also established a clear lead in the final third. Friday’s hosts ended March with a routine 3-0 win over Clermont and have now scored at least two goals in five of their last six showdowns. However, it should be noted that Novell’s side have ended four of their last five appearances at the Stadium Municipal with both teams scoring.
As for the visitors, who are also enjoying their own purple badge in Ligue 1, Montpellier find themselves in an almost identical position to Friday’s hosts. Michel Der Zakarian’s side have barely recovered from an impending relegation battle and have received a lot of praise recently: they are unbeaten in all of their five appearances in the top flight so far. With La Paillade suffering a thrilling 6-2 defeat against French giants PSG, their only defeat since the end of February, they will also be happy about the away win. Montpellier was last seen picking up an emphatic 2-1 win over Reims away at the Stade de la Mosson. In its last four Ligue 1 showdowns away from Occitanie, Montpellier has picked up 10 points. Having put in a routine 3-0 win in the second leg against Toulouse in the city on October 29, Der Zakarian’s side will be desperately hoping for a repeat here. However, with Friday’s visitors seeing five of their last six away games with both teams scoring, we expect a similar result this weekend.
Bet: Both teams will score 4/6 in Friday’s Ligue 1 clash at Toulouse vs. Montpellier @ 1xBet