Our
Gameweek 3 Tips got off to a flyer as Paris Saint�Germain held off a much-improved Montpellier. We recommended Kevin Trapp and out with some important saves, he secured his 4th cleansheet in succession and 10.8 Mondogoal points. However, our backup keeper Lopes fell into the minus points as Lyon, at home and against the odds, were defeated by Rennes.
We advised utilising a PSG defensive block and Thiago Silva confirmed that this was the correct call with 10.11pts. The Brazilians' value will increase, but this is well warranted following a string of fantastic performances. Our other defence picks were Franck Signorino (6.78pts) and Hamari Traore (4.92pts), both of Reims. We were disappointed that they couldn't muster up a cleansheet, but nevertheless they scored respectively.
This is where things began to take a turn for the worst. We favoured Lucas Moura from the PSG midfield, but it was box-to-box all-action man Matuidi who stole the headlines and racked up 17.35pts on
Mondogoal. It was the same story for Gilles Sunu. As we predicted, Angers stepped up to the plate with a 2-nil away win vs. Ajaccio, but it was Sunu's teammate Chiekh Ndoye who scored the brace and an outstanding 22.9pts. Claudio Beauvue featured from the bench but failed to make the same impact as last weekend.
Alexandre Lacazette summed up our Forward Tips with another lacklustre display.
Mondogoal managers, not to mention Lyon fans, were beginning to become frustrated with Lacazette's poor returns and the French international was unsuccessful in shaking off these concerns once again. His own fans could be heard jeering as he was hooked at the 60-minute mark with just 4.46pts.
Here's a quick recap of how our
Mondogoal Tips fared in Gameweek 3.
GOALKEEPERS
Kevin Trapp � 10.8pts
Anthony Lopes � -1.2pts
DEFENDERS
Thiago Silva � 10.11pts
Franck Signorino � 6.78pts
Hamari Traore � 4.92pts
MIDFIELDERS
Lucas Moura � 6.32pts
Gilles Sunu � 4.25pts
Claudio Beauvue � 0.71pts
FORWARDS
Alexandre Lacazette � 4.46pts
Valere Germain � 4.43pts
Edinson Cavani � 4.31pts
Moving onto our Gameweek 4 Fantasy Ligue 1 tips now with some big fixtures and cash prizes on
Mondogoal. The main event sees the champions PSG travel to the Stade Louiss to face Monaco.
Friday 28th August
Guingamp vs. Marseille (Global Comp on
Mondogoal)
Saturday 29th August
Caen vs. Lyon
Reims vs. Lorient
Rennes vs. Toulouse
Troyes vs. Montpellier
Angers vs. Nice
Lille vs. GFCO Ajaccio
Sunday 30th August
Saint-Etienne vs. SC Bastia
Bordeaux vs. Nantes
Monaco vs. Paris Saint-Germain
Clean Sheet Potential
The bookies are suggesting that Lille, Bordeaux & Saint-Etienne are the outright favourites for a cleansheet. We agree that the first two clubs are definitely worth backing, but we advise steering clear of Saint-Etienne. They come up against an in-form Bastia side who have 7 points from a possible 9 and thumped Guingamp 3-0 on Saturday.
Goalkeeper Tips
To kick things off, we are sticking with the bookies favourites and selecting Lille's number 1
Vincent Enyeama (8.0m). Including friendlies, Lille have conceded just 2 goals since July 15th. Herve Renard took over in May, after guiding the Ivory Coast to their first AFCON success since 1992, and has stamped down his disciplined style quickly. Enyeama made some outstanding reflex saves in GW3 vs. Bordeaux and has picked up back-to-back 11+ points on
Mondogoal. To make his case even stronger, Lille face Ajaccio, who are yet to score in their Ligue 1 debut season.
Nantes rarely score more than a single goal away from home, which is why we recommend Bordeaux keeper
Jerome Prior (6.3m). As our second choice, budget option. Bordeaux's first choice keeper Cedric Carrasso again misses out with an ankle sprain, so Prior fills in for his third start this season. We were afraid that Bordeaux's midweek Europa League qualification fixtures would hamper their Ligue 1 cleansheet potential, but this has not been the case and their 0-0 draw with Lille highlighted this. Bordeaux welcome Nantes, who scored the least amount of goals (29) during the 2014/15 campaign despite finishing 14th. We expect this to be a low-scoring match, so Prior looks to be a good shout.
Defender Tips
We feel that Lille are the team to endorse defensively this Gameweek, so you have a few options available and up for discussion. First off is arguably the most reliable and consistent player in Lille's defence and that's
Djibril Sidibe (8.4m). The left back scores an average of 6.63pts per game on
Mondogoal through his tackling, intercepting and cleansheet exploits. Last season he found the net twice, as well as assisting on two occasions, so hopefully he can add these outputs to his game in the near future.
Moving to the opposite side of their back four and you find another player with a high potential for
Mondogoal.
Sebastien Corchia (7.3m). The young right back started the season poorly, but appeared to find his feet last week with an assured performance vs. Bordeaux. Corchia loves to carry the ball forward and will whip balls into dangerous areas frequently. Since his Le Mans days, Corchia is fouled 1.8 times on average per game, so that is another side of his game that might appeal to you. A cleansheet for Lille looks likely, so including both of their fullbacks is a smart plan.
Another defender who we would recommend, regardless of fixtures, is Lorient's
Lamine Gassama (9.9m). The athletic fullback has a terrific points per game average of 9.29 on
Mondogoal. The Senegal international has also won 11 fouls without committing a single one himself. The only problem is that he has been flagged as ‘doubtful' for this Gameweek, so keep an eye on his status. We expect Reims vs. Lorient to be a low scoring match so our backup defender for Gassama is Reims
Franck Signorino (8.5m). The left back is very consistent and has scored 6.5pts+ in his previous 5 matches.
Attacking Potential
As expected the scoring odds are made up of the same three sides; Lille, Bordeaux and Saint-Etienne. Just trailing these sides are Rennes and Reims. We will base our attacking tips with these in mind, but for this week in particular, the playing field is wide open.
Midfielder Tips
During Marseille's 6-nil drubbing of Troyes one name we jotted down, and a familiar one at that is Newcastle United reject
Remy Cabella (8.5m). Following his torrid time in England, the slight winger has returned to his home country in an attempt to rediscover his early career form. For Montpellier in 2013/14 Cabella scored 14 goals and received 8 Man of the Match awards in 35 appearances… not bad for a winger. Cabella is perfectly suited for
Mondogoal's scoring system as he constantly looks to beat his man, often being labelled a ‘foul magnet'. He was a live wire last week, so let's see what he can do vs. Guingamp in Gameweek 4.
To add to our collection of Lille players we recommend the stand out performer in their no-score draw vs. Bordeaux, which was
Sofiane Boufal (9.7m). The creative midfielder made 4 successful tackles, attempted 4 shots, as well as completing 7 dribbles vs. Bordeaux, so it's fair to say he will be at the heart of things again this weekend. Boufal boasts fantastic statistics this season with 3.3 key passes per game and is fouled 4.7 times per game, which generates a whole new meaning to the term ‘foul magnet'. As mentioned earlier Lille face Ajaccio, who are not enjoying their time in Ligue 1, so we expect Boufal to run riot.
Lyon are still licking their wounds after another disappointing display and demoralizing loss to Rennes. We have decided enough is enough for Lacazette, but this week we are placing our last remaining trust in Lyon on
Nabil Fekir (12.3m). The attacking midfielder/striker was Lyon's single decent performer in their loss and was unlucky not to bag a brace after equalising 12 minutes in. Lacazette's goal drought is a worry, but could be a coincidental positive for Fekir owners, as now the latter will be expected to pick up the slack. A gamble no doubt, but if Lyon turn up then Fekir is the man to have on your side.
Forward Tips
If you have been following our Ligue 1 articles, you will be aware that our forward tips haven't been our forte… but hopefully this week will break the trend.
If you are looking for Paris Saint-Germain coverage, we again advise
Edinson Cavani (8.2m). Some people will be raising their eyebrows and questioning supporting a player who is playing away from home against one of the sternest backlines in France (Monaco). Cavani often turns the heat up in big encounters as he has proved it in the Champions League and this is definitely one of them. Cavani will be particularly desperate to stamp his mark on in this fixture, with the return of Zlatan looming. A quality striker and a smart differential.
Our second recommendation is
Martin Braithwaite (7.8m). The Dane leads the Toulouse front line and is their main outlet when getting behind the opposition's back 4. Braithwaite attempts a Ligue 1 high 6.7 shots per game on average, which leaves
Mondogoal managers licking their lips in anticipation, but the question is, when will he start hitting the back of the net? Gameweek 4 sets the stage, but will Braithwaite bring his scoring boots instead of just his shooting boots.
That concludes our Fantasy Ligue 1 tips, enjoy the football.
