Le Havre vs Montpellier Predictions

• Le Havre have lost their last six games, failing to score in five of them
• Montpellier have changed coach after a four-game losing run in which they conceded 14 goals
• New Montpellier coach Jean-Louis Gasset won his first five games in charge of Marseille last season

Gasset can inflate Montpellier’s miserable campaign

After changing coach last week, Montpellier are superb value to beat Le Havre in a clash of Ligue 1’s bottom two clubs on Sunday. MHSC president Laurent Nicollin informed Michel Der Zakarian that he would no longer be the coach almost as soon as the final whistle was blown to end last Sunday’s 5-0 home defeat by Marseille.

It was Montpellier’s fourth defeat in a row and they currently languish bottom of the table with only four points nine games into their 50th anniversary campaign. Nicollin persuaded former Montpellier player and coach Jean-Louis Gasset to come out of retirement for the gig and after what he did to revive Marseille’s fortunes last season, it’s easy to see why.

The 70-year-old took over at Stade Velodrome after Gennaro Gattuso had failed to win seven games in succession and they immediately became one of the most feared sides in France. Marseille won Gasset’s first five games in charge with an aggregate score of 18-3 before reality set in and they lost the next five.

Two of the worst defensive sides in France meet

The veteran coach’s reputation for turning ailing sides’ fortunes around was formed at Saint Etienne in 2018 when the brought Les Verts up from 16th in the table to sixth as they missed out in Europe on goal difference.

He faces a massive task to do anything half as good as that with this Montpellier side, who have the worst expected goals (xG) and joint-worst expected goals against (xGA) in Ligue 1.

But a trip to fellow strugglers Le Havre, who have failed to score in five of their last six games – all defeats, is as good a place as anywhere to start. Back Montpellier to win and, although Le Havre are not looking so harp up front, both teams should also score in this clash of two of the three worst defensive sides in Ligue 1.