Sunday's Bundesliga & Ligue 1 predictions and free football tips

Best bets and predictions for Sunday's matches in Ligue 1 and the Bundesliga.

Best bets

Nantes 2pm
2pts 17-10 general

Cologne & over 1.5 goals
Sky Sports Football, 4.30pm
1pt 10-11 Betfair, Paddy Power

Sunday preview

Nantes were given a hiding by Paris Saint-Germain in the Trophee des Champions last weekend but that shouldn't stop punters from believing the Canaries can get their Ligue 1 campaign off to a winning start at Angers.

Last week's 4-0 thrashing in Tel Aviv underlined the gulf between the French champions and the rest but Nantes should fancy their chances at the Stade Raymond-Kopa, chiefly because of the disarray in the Angevin camp.

The summer exodus from Angers was bad enough with seven-goal Thomas Mangani, key men Angelo Fulgini, Jimmy Cabot and a host of others leaving the club.

That left them massively leaning on Nabil Bentaleb and Sofiane Boufal for a bright start to the campaign – and both are absentees.

Angers shipped 11 goals in their last four friendlies and that leaves them exposed against a Nantes side who have been improved massively over the last 18 months by Antoine Kombouare. Mostafa Mohamed, who had a decent scoring record for a non-regular over the last two years at Galatasaray, will add potency up front.

Schalke have returned to the Bundesliga after a one-year absence, back up as champions although not entirely convincingly. They accrued less than two points per game, lost nine times and shipped 44 goals in 34 matches winning Bundesliga 2.

The Royal Blues should do better than they did 2020-21 but are tipped to get off to a losing start at Cologne, who finished last season in the European places.

The goals of the ageless Anthony Modeste were critical and the front-footed Billy Goats are going to be loaded up with even more firepower this time with Sargis Adamyan signed from Hoffenheim via a productive loan spell at Bruges.

Cologne are short enough but this is the competition that features goals so backing the hosts to win and over 1.5 goals is a trick worth trying for bigger gains.

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