Lyon v Dijon: French Ligue 1 betting preview, predictions and free tips

Free football tips, best bets and analysis for Lyon v Dijon in Ligue 1 on Friday.

Where to watch

BT Sport 2, 8pm Friday

Best bet

Lyon -1 goal (handicap)
1pt 10-11 general

Team news

Lyon
Rudi Garcia could revert to a back four, allowing Moussa Dembele to return to the starting line-up. Rafael is suspended.

Dijon
Romain Amalfitano is expected to be recalled. Loanee Papa Cheikh Diop is unable to play against his parent club.

Match preview

Lyon fell at the penultimate hurdle in the Champions League but they still performed with great credit on Europe's biggest stage and they should prove too strong for Dijon in their belated Ligue 1 opener.

Rudi Garcia's men knocked Juventus and Manchester City out of Europe before coming up short against Bayern Munich in the semi-finals. But they exceeded expectations given their seventh-place finish in the truncated Ligue 1 season.

Their 2019-20 position is misleading anyway. They were much better after Garcia took charge in October and will expect a stronger league campaign this term.

A lack of European football does leave Lyon vulnerable to the loss of key players including Houssem Aouar and Moussa Dembele but Garcia still has both at his disposal for now.

Dembele notched 16 goals in 27 Ligue 1 games last season - a record bettered by only Wissam Ben Yedder and Kylian Mbappe - and will be a threat if he gets the nod up front.

Dijon started their season with a dismal 1-0 home loss against Angers in which they registered just one shot on target and they do not possess the same quality in their squad as Lyon.

Lyon could only draw 0-0 in this fixture last season, but that came shortly after Garcia's appointment and they subsequently lost just two Ligue 1 home matches.

The hosts are understandably heavy favourites to start their league campaign with three points and given that the players should be sharp following their Champions League bid they are expected to run out clear winners.

Key stat

Four of Lyon's five Ligue 1 home victories last season came by a margin of at least two goals.

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