Ligue 1 Tips: Back odds-against Marseille to secure away-day success | OneFootball

French Ligue 1

Marseille's Adrien Rabiot resumes Ligue 1 action in great form

James Eastham has picked out the top two Ligue 1 routes to profit on Saturday and Sunday this weekend...

Lens vs Marseille - Sat, 16:00

Marseille are worth backing to get something from their trip to face Lens on Saturday.

Roberto De Zerbi's visitors are big outsiders and we feel the market has priced this match wrong.

Lens are 2.38 to win, while The Draw is 3.6 and Marseille 3.25. Those big odds on l'OM are hard to explain, and make the visitors the strong selection.

Marseille may have lost two of their last three fixtures but both of those defeats - vs PSG (0-3) on October 27 and Auxerre (1-3) on November 8 - were at home, at Stade Velodrome. On the road, l'OM are a much stronger proposition: their W5-D0-L1 record makes them Ligue 1's top-performing away side.

Lens aren't especially strong at home: they're W2-D2-L1 in front of their own fans. The hosts' average record makes it difficult to justify their status as clear favourites this weekend.

Team news should favour Marseille: Lens centre-backs Jonathan Gradit and Abdukodir Khusanov are suspended, meaning manager Will Still will struggle to adequately fill the third back-three slot alongside regular starters Kevin Danso and Facundo Medina. Poland right-wing-back Przemyslaw Frankowski may be ruled out by injury, too.

Marseille have no such concerns: according to latest reports, De Zerbi may be able to field his strongest line-up. In the player markets, keep an eye on Adrien Rabiot: the Marseille midfielder scored twice for France in their 3-1 (away) Nations League victory over Italy earlier this week. He's 7/1 in the Anytime Goalscorer market.

Consider backing Marseille to win, but there are other ways to support them. Marseille Draw No Bet at 5/4 and Marseille with a small Asian Handicap start are equally appealing. With our Asian Handicap pick, you'll make a profit as long as Marseille avoid defeat.

Auxerre vs Angers - Sat, 16:00

Expect goals, thrills and plenty of entertainment at Stade Abbe-Deschamps on Sunday afternoon.

This clash of promoted sides ought to be a terrific watch thanks to the style of play Auxerre have proposed this season. Auxerre manager Christophe Pelissier encourages his side to attack at great pace, especially at home, so we expect an open encounter.

The stats underline how Auxerre are prepared to take risks to get points. They sit ninth in the Ligue 1 table heading into this weekend despite having kept just two clean sheets in 11 games to date. Pelissier is happy for his side to concede chances as long as his players get forward and put pressure on the opposition defence at the other end.

Their bold approach explains why 10 of Auxerre's 11 Ligue 1 games - and all five of their home league games - have featured three or more goals. Auxerre's average goals-per-game count is 3.55 overall, and 3.2 at home.

Angers' games have been lower-scoring, but they're likely to get sucked into Auxerre's way of playing. Angers have conceded in 10 of their 11 league games this season while scoring at least once in each of their last nine fixtures. These stats show the visitors are fully capable of contributing to a high-scoring encounter.

Taking all factors into account, the market underrates the chances of Over 2.5 Goals, in our view. The price is odds-on, but well worth taking.

Recommended bets

Back Marseille 0 & +0.5 Asian Handicap at Lens @ 1.95Back Auxerre vs Angers Over 2.5 Goals @ 1.73

James' 2024-25 P/L

Staked: 26ptsReturned: +26.48ptsP/L: +0.48pts