The opening match in the Coupe de France round of 16 will see Dunkerque seeking an upset victory over Lille on Tuesday at Stade Pierre-Mauroy.
In the round of 32, the Ligue 2 side came from behind to defeat Haguenau 3-1, while Les Dogues ousted Marseille on penalties (4-3) after that match ended 1-1 in a 1-1 draw.
Match preview
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It was another nervy ending for Lille at the Coupe de France the last time out, but they kept cool when needed, converting all of their penalties after conceding a Marseille equaliser deep into stoppage time.
The friendly confines of Stade Pierre-Mauroy have proven to be a massive advantage for Bruno Genesio's men all season, as they are currently on a 12-match unbeaten run at home across all competitions.
It has been nearly 20 years since they were last eliminated in this competition on home soil, falling 3-1 to Grenoble extra-time in the 2005 round of 16 phase.
Lille have scored in every one of their home fixtures this season across all competitions and were convincing winners the last time they hosted a Coupe de France match at Stade Pierre-Mauroy, hammering Golden Lion 12-0 last season, the biggest victory in club history.
This phase of the tournament, however, has given them problems of late, with Les Nordistes exiting the Coupe de France in the last 16 in five of their previous six campaigns.
Lille have not lost a Coupe de France fixture against a lower-tiered side since the round of 16 in 2020 when SAS Espinal scored two second-half goals to claim a stunning 2-1 come-from-behind victory.
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Staring defeat in the face with 15 minutes remaining in the round of 32, Dunkerque suddenly came to life with three unanswered goals to advance.
Those were their only three shots on target throughout the 90 minutes, with this team winning all of their Coupe de France contests this season away from home.
Luis Castro's side have suffered just two defeats in their previous eight matches across all competitions, one of which occurred over the weekend at home to Martigues in Ligue 2 (1-0).
Tuesday will mark their first appearance at this stage of the tournament since 1978, when Nantes eliminated them 7-0 on aggregate.
You have to go back to 1970 for the last time this club made the Coupe de France quarter-finals, defeating Raid Menton 3-2 on aggregate before being knocked out by Lyon in the last eight by a cumulative score of 6-3.
In three prior Coupe de France meetings with Lille, Les Maritimes have suffered two defeats, with their lone triumph dating back to the opening round in 1968 (1-0).
Team News
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A cruciate ligament issue will keep Tiago Santos on the Lille sidelines for this one, Nabil Bentaleb is questionable with an illness, Edon Zhegrova must sit out with a groin strain, while Matias Fernandez-Pardo has an ankle injury.
We may be at least another week away from seeing Samuel Umtiti return from his knee problem, and Ismaily is doubtful because of a calf strain.
Hakon Arnar Haraldsson had their opening goal in the previous round, while Vito Mannone stopped two Marseille penalties to send his team through the last 16.
Between Dunkerque's round of 64 triumph over Auxerre (1-0) and their previous match at this tournament, four new faces were in the lineup, including Allan Linguet, Gessime Yassine, Naatan Skytta and Maxence Rivera.
Gaetan Courtet levelled their round of 32 clash with Haguenau last month, with the other goals coming courtesy of Skytta and Yacine Bammou in the dying stages.
Lille possible starting lineup:
Mannone; Meunier, Diakite, Alexsandro, Gudmundsson; Bouaddi, Andre; Bakker, Cabella, Haraldsson; David
Dunkerque possible starting lineup:
Jaouen; Youssouf, Sangante, Kondo, Linguet; Queiros; G. Yassine, Skytta, Diop, Rivera; Courtet
We say: Lille 3-0 Dunkerque
Lille have beaten some of the top teams in Europe this season, and given their outstanding home form and attacking, we do not foresee them having trouble with a Dunkerque side that have been inconsistent domestically since the start of 2025.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
Joel Lefevre
