Nantes v Saint Etienne Betting Tips [21 May 2022]

Ninth-place Nantes wrap up their Ligue 1 season with the visit of relegation-threatened St Etienne, who will need a result on the final matchday for a chance of top-flight football for the next season. The hosts come into this match coming off a 3-2 away loss to Lyon, leaving them even on points with Lille at 54 and trailing eighth-place by four points. They will meet a St Etienne squad who currently occupy 19th in the league table on 31 points, putting them even with 17th place Metz and with no chance of escaping the relegation zone as they trail 16th by four points. The only chance the 10-time Ligue 1 winners have of escaping the drop would be to secure themselves 17th place and enter the promotion playoff, which would see them take on the third-place team in Ligue 2. St Etienne trail Metz on goal differential so must get at least a point here while hoping Metz don’t match or better their result - something that is quite likely with their rivals having to travel to take on PSG away from home.

St Etienne will surely be desperate for this one with their season on the line. However, things could be tough for Les Verts as Nantes have been a very strong side when playing at the Beaujoire Stadium this season and have a home record of 11 wins, three draws and four defeats in 18 matches. St Etienne contrastingly have not been good this year on the road, unsurprising when looking at their league standing. They’ve only managed 13 points away from home all year and haven’t won in their last six trips. St Etienne are also on a four match losing streak while Nantes have only lost once in their last four matches, so it’s difficult to envision things changing for this one.

We’re going with Nantes draw no bet as our bet for this match. Nantes won’t be able to move up any further in the table so they are really only playing to secure themselves a ninth-place finish. Despite the visitors with more on the line here, Nantes strong home form coupled with St Etienne’s rough results and poor performances make it hard to see past anything other than a home win. With the security of a draw resulting in a push available at these odds, this bet is a no-brainer.