The new crown epidemic is sweeping through Europe, France is already the hardest hit area, and the Rennes and Bordeaux players in Ligue 1 are almost all around 20 people. Rennes' Ligue 1 match for Strasbourg at the weekend was postponed due to the serious epidemic in the former team. Today, Tuesday's French Cup is still the focus of European competition, with the focus on the confrontation between powerhouse Lens and defending champion Lille.
However, Lens and Lille have also been affected by the African Cup of Nations draw players and the new crown epidemic, and the squad has been damaged, which will inevitably change the performance on the spot.
French Cup Lens vs Lille
When: 04:00, January 5
Reference: Lens (draw/hemisphere)
Direction: Small balls (2.5 balls)
Compared with teams such as Bordeaux and Rennes, which have been affected by the cluster infection of the new crown pneumonia team, Lens is still in good condition. Lance is only absent from Machado and Heisse, who are still recovering from meniscal injuries, and Haidara (Mali) and Ganago (Cameroon), who have left the team for the Africa Cup of Nations. At the same time, the return of P. Borg, former Hebei Huaxia Happiness foreign aid Kakuta and Said from injury will fill the shortcomings of the team's lineup.
Ganaggo and Hydara participated in the Africa Cup of Nations, which had a great impact on Lens's attack power.
Lens boss Frank Heather has always been known for attacking football, but the team's aggressive 343 formation, while bringing a good start to six Ligue 1 games, has recently suffered a six-game winless finish in Ligue 1. The only win in the French Cup was a 1-0 away win for the lower team, scoring the goal by Ganagher, who left the team to participate in the African Cup of Nations. Although the home draw was successfully forced to draw with Paris, but then the subsequent defeats to Nantes and Nice entered the winter break, and the morale of the team was low. Machado, Ganaggo and Hydara were not the main players in the first half, but after all, they led to a shortage of staffing in the team's first team.
The 19-year-old Muinga is the Golden Boot in the Langs team and is in good shape.
Compared with the away team Lille, Lens's attack power is more scattered but the total amount is outstanding. Frankowski and Klaus on the left and right wings are the main assisters, with Sotoka, Ganango, Muinga and Said scoring more average goals on the offensive end, 19-year-old Muinga scoring 6 goals in 14 appearances is the team's golden boot, and the main center Sotoka is also 3 goals and 4 assists, which together with the two wingsmen constitute the team's offensive system. Although Lens's recent record is far inferior to that of the away team Lille, he has a strong attacking power, and only one of the last 10 games has not scored.
Lille's forward line double David and Irmaz were absent, and the attacking power was sharply reduced.
As the defending champion, Lille has been unbeaten in 11 matches in all competitions, has reached the round of 16 of the Champions League, and in December, he was unbeaten with 6 wins, 5 wins and 1 draw. However, Lille has four players who have tested positive for nucleic acid, including Canadian top scorer David, who scored 12 goals, and forward rookie Lihaji. In addition, Ilmaz, a 36-year-old Turkish striker who played for Beijing Guoan, was suspended, and Timothy Wea, the son of Liberian legend Weah, was also injured and absent, and Lille suffered heavy losses on the offensive end. The team has scored just 24 goals in Ligue 1 so far, with David and Irmaz accounting for 2/3.
In Lille, plagued by the covid-19 pandemic, the offensive hopes fell on Yazzin and Sanchez.
In addition, Lille is missing out of the team's midfielder Icoone. Coach Guvinné can only pin his hopes on Turkish midfielder Yazzin, Portuguese midfielder Sanchez, French homegrown goalscorer Bamba, who has not scored so far in the season, and 18-year-old Portuguese newcomer José Hayes, hoping that they can support the offensive end. Although Lille has suddenly increased its attacking power recently, scoring 13 goals in 6 games in December and 3 goals in 3 of the last 4 games, it is difficult for the team to have such a strong attack power without the main scorers David and Ilmaz.
While both teams are offensive and known for their attacking power, the COVID-19 pandemic and the Africa Cup of Nations have had a big impact on the team's attacking power. In this campaign, Lens has developed from a draw to a flat hand, and the outside world seems to be not optimistic about Lille, who has been hit hard by the new crown epidemic. In terms of injuries, Lens suffered less losses, and it is optimistic that Lens can make a difference at home, but it is difficult to score more goals.