A pair of unbeaten sides in Ligue 1 this year will square off on Sunday from Stade Gabriel Montpied, as Clermont can stretch their domestic unbeaten run to six matches when they host Monaco.
Earlier this week, Clermont drew 0-0 with Lille for their second successive draw by that scoreline, while Les Monegasques hung onto a 3-2 victory over Auxerre, climbing up to fourth in the table.
Match preview
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After going winless in their final six league fixtures of 2022, Clermont have turned it around domestically this year and are currently on their longest ever unbeaten run in the top flight (five games).
Pascal Gastien has seen his side do an excellent job at minimising their opponents' scoring opportunities, particularly at home, failing to concede a shot on target in a 0-0 draw with Nantes and only allowing two versus the fourth-highest-scoring team in Ligue 1 when they defeated Rennes 2-1.
Les Lanciers have accumulated 30 points after 21 domestic fixtures, a dozen more than they managed to get at this same point of their inaugural top-flight campaign in 2021-22.
CF63 have never beaten Monaco in a Ligue 1 fixture and have only triumphed against them once in all competitions, with that one victory coming at home in 2011-12 when both sides were in Ligue 2.
If they can manage a win or draw this weekend, it would set a new club record for their longest unbeaten run at home in this competition, having claimed four points over its last two domestic encounters at Stade Gabriel Montpied.
Clermont have drawn first blood in two of their three home meetings with Monaco, though their 1-0 lead in this exact fixture a season ago lasted fewer than 20 minutes before Les Monegasques scored three unanswered goals to win 3-1.
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Since the season resumed in December, Monaco have been perhaps the most potent side in Ligue 1 in the attacking third, scoring 17 goals, more than any team in the French top flight over that stretch.
From the start of the season until now, that has been probably the one thing this group have done consistently well, finding the back of the net in 31 consecutive matches in this competition, the longest current run of any Ligue 1 side and only five short of their record set between September 2016 and August 2017.
Philippe Clement will be pleased with how well his side have started their encounters this year, scoring first in six successive matches in all competitions.
They come into this match unbeaten in five successive away fixtures in all competitions, though they failed to hang onto a half-time lead in their previous road game, conceding an Alexis Sanchez strike two minutes into the second half last Saturday, drawing Marseille 1-1.
Monaco have lost only one of their last 15 away matches in this competition, with that defeat coming last November, 4-3 at Lille.
Defensively, Les Monegasques have not conceded more than one goal to Clermont in any competitive fixture, keeping them off the scoresheet in five of their eight meetings in all competitions.
Team News
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Mory Diaw has posted back-to-back clean sheets domestically for the second time this season, stopping all five Lille efforts on Wednesday, while Elbasan Rashani and Neto Borges were the last players to find the back of the net for Clermont when they edged Angers 2-1.
Komnen Andric scored the equalising goal for them when they drew Monaco 1-1 earlier in the campaign, as he is currently tied with Muhammed Cham for the team lead with four goals.
Maxime Gonalons could be available despite previously suffering from muscle fatigue, Johan Gastien is unlikely to feature because of a calf strain and Jeremie Bela continues to recover from his back injury.
Wissam Ben Yedder has a goal in four of his last five matches for Monaco in all competitions, moving into a tie for third in Ligue 1 scoring (12) as he, Eliesse Ben Seghir and Breel Embolo each found the back of the net versus Auxerre in midweek.
Ben Yedder, Kevin Volland and former midfielder Sofiane Diop each scored when they defeated Clermont in this exact fixture last season, while Alexander Nubel leads Ligue 1 in saves this season with 79.
Krepin Diatta should be fully recovered from his foot injury by the middle of February, while Clement inserted two new faces into his starting 11 in midweek as Mohamed Camara and Gelson Martins replaced Eliot Matazo and Diatta.
Clermont possible starting lineup:
Diaw; Borges, Caufriez, Ogier, Seidu; Magnin, Gonalons, Allevinah; Rashani, Kyei; Andric
Monaco possible starting lineup:
Nubel; Vanderson, Disasi, Maripan, Henrique; Fofana, Magassa; Ben Seghir, Golovin; Embolo, Ben Yedder
We say: Clermont 1-3 Monaco
Monaco have played aggressively throughout 2023, and although they tend to concede some quality scoring opportunities, they have been splendid in the attacking third all year, and we expect them to find the back of the net a few times this weekend.
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