On Saturday afternoon, two teams with four points from their first two matches of the 2022-23 Ligue 1 season will clash when Monaco welcomes Lens to Stade Louis II with kickoff at 6 pm.
Monaco will play in the Europa League this season after losing 3-2 on aggregate to PSV Eindhoven in the third qualifying round of the Champions League.
The two teams drew 1-1 in the first leg on August 2 before PSV won 3-2 after extra time in the second leg seven days later.
Monaco has been in action since the second leg with PSV, playing out a 1-1 draw with Rennes last Saturday, which followed a 2-1 victory over Strasbourg in their first game of the new Ligue 1 season.
The principality outfit was behind at home to Rennes last weekend until Breel Embolo found the back of the net in the 72nd minute, with both teams sharing the spoils at Stade Louis II.
Lens finished seventh in Ligue 1 last season and was only four points behind fifth-placed Nice. The 1997-98 French champions have also started well this season, beating Brest 3-2 at home on the opening weekend before drawing 0-0 with Ajaccio. They will be looking to return to winning ways against Monaco before hosting Rennes and Lorient in their final two matches of the month.
Monaco vs. Lens Head to Head
Both sides have 25 games against each other, with hosts taking ten wins while opponents with five wins. Here is a look at their previous encounters:
Home
- Monaco 1-1 Rennes
- PSV Eindhoven 3-2 Monaco
- RC Strasbourg 1-2 Monaco
- Monaco 1-1 PSV
Away
- AC Ajaccio 0-0 RC Lens
- RC Lens 3-2 Brest
- RC Lens 0-0 West Ham
- Lens 1-0 Inter
Monaco Team News
Monaco will be without midfielder Youssouf Fofana on Saturday after the player was sent off in the team’s 1-1 draw with Rennes last time out. Eighteen-year-old Soungoutou Magassa could get the start in his place. The home side will also be missing Ruben Aguilar, Yllan Okou, Willem Geubbels, and Myron Boadu through injury.
Lens Team News
Lens will be without Gael Kakuta, Adam Buksa, and Wuilker Farinez for the match against Monaco. The visitors did not pick up any fresh injuries in their goalless draw with Ajaccio last time out, though, and head coach Haise is expected to resist the temptation to shuffle his pack.
Prediction and Odds
Both teams will want to claim a positive result on Saturday, and we expect the game to be close.
- Monaco Win
- Both Teams to Score
- Embolo to Score
