Monaco will be looking to recover from their thrashing at the hands of Lyon when they welcome Bordeaux to the Stade Louis II for Sunday's Ligue 1 encounter.
In contrast, the visitors are searching for their second win on the bounce having overcome Nimes 2-0 in gameweek eight.
Match preview
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Monaco are a team packed with talent at all ends of the pitch - there is no denying that - but Niko Kovac's crop of players have not been performing like a side chasing a European berth over the past few weeks.
Indeed, Les Monegasques boast a measly one win from their last five top-flight outings and were put to the sword by Lyon with ease last weekend, with Rudi Garcia's side extending their unbeaten run thanks to a first-half display of attacking dominance against Kovac's men.
Karl Toko Ekambi bagged a brace while Houssem Aouar and Memphis Depay both found the back of the net in the opening 45, with Wissam Ben Yedder's penalty doing little to console the Monaco faithful, who have not seen their side win since a narrow 3-2 victory over struggling Strasbourg back in September.
Les Monegasques's centre-back pairing of Axel Disasi and Benoit Badiashile certainly bodes well for the future - if the French outfit manage to keep hold of the highly-rated duo - and Kovac may look to take lessons from their opponents' resolute defence as the Monaco manager looks to stop the goals leaking in for a side with just one clean sheet compared to Bordeaux's six.
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Bordeaux have not become renowned for many high-scoring affairs as of late, but as long as the results are coming in for Jean-Louis Gasset, the Girondins boss will not give a second thought as to how many goals it is by.
However, Bordeaux had to rely on two late strikes from substitutes Jimmy Briand and Remi Oudin in the final 10 minutes against Nimes, who - like many before them - tried and failed to break down the dogged Girondins defence.
Gasset's men appear to have fully recovered from their defeat to Marseille, and Bordeaux will now look to take advantage of Monaco's recent woes before they welcome an equally out-of-sorts Montpellier side to the Matmut Atlantique before the international break.
Bordeaux will certainly be eyeing six points from six from their next two encounters given that Rennes and Paris Saint-Germain lie in wait for Gasset's men in the coming weeks, and recent history suggests that Les Girondins can continue their strong form this weekend.
Indeed, Bordeaux took the spoils 2-1 in their only meeting with Les Monegasques last season, with Sunday's hosts winning just two of their last 13 games against Les Girondins on home soil.
Monaco Ligue 1 form: WLWLDL
Bordeaux Ligue 1 form: DLDWLW
Team News
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Monaco youngster Willem Geubbels is suspended for this encounter, which means that Stevan Jovetic can almost certainly look forward to another start out wide.
Kevin Volland will most likely have to make do with a place on the bench once again, but Cesc Fabregas has a chance of returning to Kovac's midfield three.
However, Sunday's game may come too soon for Fode Ballo-Toure as he recovers from a broken toe, while Aleksandr Golovin is nursing a hamstring injury.
As for Bordeaux, Samuel Kalu remains out with a hamstring problem while Laurent Koscielny is doubtful, but the pair would have struggled to break into the first XI for this one.
Oudin and Maja will both hope to have done enough to warrant recalls to their first XI following their goals against Nimes, although Gasset will not want to disrupt the harmony too much.
Monaco possible starting lineup:
Lecomte; Aguilar, Disasi, Badiashile, Sidibe; Tchouameni, Fofana, Fabregas; Martins, Ben Yedder, Jovetic
Bordeaux possible starting lineup:
Costil; Sabaly, Pablo, Baysse, Benito; Otavio, Basic; Oudin, Ben Arfa, De Preville; Briand
We say: Monaco 1-2 Bordeaux
This should be an interesting battle between the talented attacking contingent of Monaco and the unwavering defensive unit of Bordeaux. Les Girondins may not be able to build on their impressive clean-sheet record at the Stade Louis II, but Bordeaux are historically strong in this fixture and we are backing Gasset's men to scrape a narrow victory on Sunday.
