Competition: Friendly
Market: Lille win
Odds: 6/11 @ BetUS
Heading into their penultimate friendly showdown on Wednesday afternoon, Lille will host Italian outfit Venezia.
Starting with the hosts, suffering real heartbreak back in May as they eventually missed out on a Champions League ticket thanks to their goal difference, Lille are desperate to immediately dust themselves down. However, suffering consecutive 3-2 losses against Borussia Dortmund and Como over the past few weeks, Bruno Genesio̢۪s men are seeking some much-welcomed stability ahead of the 2025/26 campaign. Despite signing off last season with a 2-1 win at home against Reims on May 17th, Lille also know the importance of finding some defensive steel. Along with shipping a trio of strikes in their back-to-back friendly appearances this summer, the Mastiffs have failed to register consecutive clean sheets across any competition so far this calendar year. However, registering 10 points from their final four Ligue 1 matchups at the Stade Pierre-Mauroy, it should be noted that Genesio̢۪s side are unbeaten in front of their own supporters since returning from March̢۪s international break.
As for the visitors, while Venezia might have enjoyed an impressive summer flurry, the Winged Lions endured what was a public Serie A crisis last season. Losing their top-flight status and limping their way over the finishing line, new boss Giovanni Stroppa has a real job on his hands. Signing off the 2024/25 campaign with an action-packed 3-2 loss at home against Italian icons Juventus, Wednesday̢۪s guests mustered just a single win from any of their final six Serie A appearances. Hit with a 3-0 drumming at the hands of Cagliari on May 18th, the Veneto-based outfit also gained an unwanted reputation for their defensive struggles. Mustering just a single clean sheet after returning from March̢۪s international break, Venezia are pencilled in as a real underdog contender when they travel to France in midweek. Remarkably failing to muster a single away victory last season, we are backing a home win on Wednesday afternoon.
Bet: Lille 6/11 to beat Venezia in Wednesday’s friendly battle @ BetUS