Competing in their fourth consecutive Ligue 1 campaign, Le Havre will open their 2026-27 account on Sunday when they welcome Monaco to Stade Oceane. The Normandy club finished three points above the relegation playoff line last season, in 14th place, while Monaco were seventh, claiming the final Conference League qualifying place. Match preview While Le Havre have scraped by domestically, narrowly surviving relegation time and again, they have consistently done enough to stay above that line. Even though they have not finished higher than 14th in the table under Didier Digard, last season they racked up 35 points, their best since the competition move to a 34-match campaign. They have points in six of their last seven matches in this competition but collected maximum points in only one of those instances (2-0 at Lorient). Le Havre can snap a five-match winless run at home in Ligue 1 on Sunday, collecting a total of three points over that stretch.
While they are rarely out of a game, the Normandy side are often their own worst enemy, committing the second-most fouls per game (13.7) in the league last season. Les Ciel et Marine are unbeaten in their last five home meetings against Les Monegasques across all competitions, earning a 0-0 draw in this exact fixture last season. © Iconsport / Jonathan Moscrop/Sportimage, Sportimage Ltd/Alamy Live News
There were stretches of good form from Monaco in 2025-26, but ultimately, they paid the price for their lack of consistency. It will be up to Filipe Luis to bring back some stability to this group as the Copa Libertadores-winning coach with Flamengo takes over a team that a season ago had their worst top-flight finish since 2019-20 (ninth). Les Monegasques have dropped points in three of their last four away matches in this competition, conceding a combined 12 goals altogether. Discipline has often been their Achilles heel, with this team incurring the second-most red cards in the league in 2025-26 (six). Monaco had their share of good opportunities in front of goal domestically in 2025-26, winning the second-most possessions in the final third while creating the fifth-most big chances.
The Principality club have won their opening away match in this competition in three of the past four instances but lost last season 1-0 at Lille. Le Havre Pre-season form:
Monaco Pre-season form:
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Monaco form (all competitions):
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For this opening fixture, Le Havre will be without Stephan Zagadou, who is recovering from a cruciate ligament tear and Felix Mambimbi is out after suffering an Achilles tendon injury. Amir Richardson is likely to make his first appearance in Ligue 1 since the 2023-24 season with Reims, after the Moroccan rejoined them on loan this summer, while newcomer Junior Mwanga will be eager to impress having signed from Strasbourg. Monaco will be missing Mohammed Salisu, who is recovering from a cruciate ligament tear, and we likely won’t see Takumi Minamino for that same reason, while the club terminated the contract of Paul Pogba. Folarin Balogun remains heavily linked with a move to Tottenham, who are among those reportedly interested in his services, opening the door for Mika Biereth to likely start this weekend, with former Nantes striker Matthis Abline pushing for a spot in the starting lineup as well. Le Havre possible starting lineup:
Diaw; Pembele, Seko, Sasso, Zouaoui; Ndiaye, Mwanga; Mizuta, Richardson, Nakamura; Samatta
Monaco possible starting lineup:
Hradecky; Vanderson, Teze, Dier, Nazinho; Detourbet, Camara, Zakaria, Golovin; Abline, Biereth
We say: Le Havre 0-1 Monaco Filipe Luis is a savvy defensive mind, and we expect him to adapt to Le Havre’s game plan and find a way past the home side thanks to his team’s creativity and attacking depth, which is much stronger than the home team’s. For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
