Metz v Lorient: survival fight meets top-half push | OneFootball

Metz host Lorient in Ligue 1 on Sunday, 10 May 2026 at Stade Saint-Symphorien, with the bottom club chasing precious points in the relegation scrap and the visitors looking to firm up a top half finish.

Recent meetings have been tight, including a 1-1 draw in January. Benoit Tavenot's Metz start from 18th, while Lorient arrive 9th.

Metz are winless in their last five Ligue 1 games, drawing with Nantes and at Le Havre in that run before losing to Monaco last time out. Lorient's recent sequence is mixed but eye-catching: a home win over Marseille, a draw away to Paris Saint-Germain and stalemates with Paris FC and PSG bookending defeats to Lyon and Strasbourg.

Team news could matter. Metz list Ousmane Ba, Cleo Mélières and Joseph Mangondo as injured. Lorient are without Darline Yongwa, Theo Le Bris and Bamo Meïté.

The match-up may hinge on whether Metz can tighten a defence that has conceded 72 league goals. Up the pitch, Gauthier Hein has carried a major load with eight goals and seven assists this season. Lorient bring clearer cutting edge: Pablo Pagis sits on 10 Ligue 1 goals this term, with Bamba Dieng on nine and Arsène Kouassi contributing five assists.

A home win would move Metz to 19 points and could narrow the gap to safety. Victory for Lorient would take them to 45 points and strengthen their grip on a top half berth.