Two of the teams who secured victories on the opening weekend of the new Ligue 1 season in France meet at the Stade de Roudourou on Sunday evening, with Guingamp taking on star-studded PSG.
Guingamp
Having finished in mid-table in last year’s Ligue 1 campaign, Guingamp produced one of the performances of the opening weekend, with Antoine Kombouaré’s men coming from behind to win 3-1 at Metz. No wholesale changes have taken place at Guingamp over the summer, meaning that their playing squad is similar to that of this time 12 months ago. Ludovic Blas was the star of the show against Metz last time around, with the 19-year-old Frenchman ending the game with a goal and an assist. The France under-21 international will undoubtedly be a threat to the Monaco defence, with experienced striker Jimmy Briand hoping to be on the end of his work on either flank.
PSG
PSG won the French Super Cup with a win over Monaco a matter of weeks ago, before strolling to an opening Ligue 1 victory over Amiens. With much of the talk in Paris having surrounded the arrival of Neymar Jr in recent days, the Brazilian could well make his debut against Guingamp, having missed PSG’s game last weekend due to his transfer documents not being processed in time. It remains to be seen as to whether the former Barcelona man will feature from the off on Sunday, with the likes of Angel di Maria, Edison Cavani and Javier Pastore having performed well last time around. Manager Unai Emery will be under even more pressure to deliver following the arrival of Neymar Jr, with the former Sevilla boss having come under criticism last year, with PSG having surrendered their Ligue 1 title to Monaco.
Head to Head
The two teams have met 13 times in their history, with PSG having won eight of those fixtures, as well as earning one draw. Four previous victories for Guingamp will certainly give the home side hope, with their last success coming back in December 2016, when they overcame PSG 2-1. Despite this, PSG showed their class to overcome Guingamp 4-0 in Paris just a matter of months later, in what was the duo’s last encounter together.
Betting Odds and Predictions
Fixtures between Guingamp and PSG are almost certain to produce goals, with their last five encounters having seen no fewer than 18 goals scored, 16 of which have gone to the Paris-based club. As a result, for those looking to place a bet on this match, utilising the over/under market could well be your best option. Ladbrokes offer odds of 8/15 for there to be over 2.5 goals, which will certainly be appealing to many customers.
Elsewhere, with Neymar Jr set to make his long-awaited debut for PSG, plenty are likely to be looking to back the Brazilian to produce a debut goal for the travelling support from Paris. SkyBet are often the best bookmaker for first goalscorer markets, with their odds set to appear closer to kick-off.
Top Betting Tip
Our top betting tip for the match between Guingamp and PSG is to back the visitors to claim all three points, as well as three or more goals to be scored. This can be found at best odds of 7/10 at William Hill.