Lens vs Le Havre Prediction: Friday night delight for Les Sang et Or

RC Lens were knocked off top spot in Ligue 1 last weekend, losing 3-1 at Olympique Marseille on the Saturday, 24 hours after Paris Saint-Germain returned to the summit with a 1-0 win at AJ Auxerre. Les Sang et Ors can retake the lead, for 48 hours at least, with a victory over strugglers Le Harve this Friday (19:45 GMT, Amazon Prime Video).

Below are my Lens vs Le Havre predictions, supported by all the latest team news and match odds, ahead of this second-versus-15th clash at the Stade Bollaert-Delelis.

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Team News

Jonathan Gradit, Jhoanner Chavez (both thigh), Samson Baidoo, Regis Gurtner (both hamstring) and new loan signing Arthur Masuaku (ankle) could all miss out for Lens on Friday due to injury, while Morgan Guilavogui is serving a one-game ban for Pierre Sage's side.

Football Odds

As for Didier Digard's Le Havre, Abdoulaye Toure (knee), Reda Khadra (shoulder), Etienne Youte Kinkou (head) and Gautier Lloris (hamstring) are all likely sidelined for this trip up north.

Lens vs Le Havre Odds

Lens won the reverse fixture 2-1 at the Stade Oceane in August, and Sage's side are 2/5 to do the double over their opponents, implying a 71.4% probability of success, while Le Havre are 13/2, or a 13.2% chance, to triumph on their travels for just the second time this season, and the first since beating Auxerre 1-0 on October 26.

The draw is priced at 18/5, both teams to score at 4/5, and over 2.5 total goals at 8/13.

Both Teams To Score In The First Half has been boosted from 10/3 to 4/1.

To Win to Nil - Lens @ 5/4

This looks like the most obvious play, as the two teams have been chalk and cheese this season.

Lens are 23 points ahead of Le Havre in Ligue 1, and the title contenders boast the division's second-best home record, with only reigning champions PSG (25) picking up more points at their own stadium than Les Sang et Or (24), who have dropped points in just one of their nine games at the Stade Bollaert-Delelis (W8, L1).

Sage's charges were beaten 3-1 at Marseille last weekend, but that was no disgrace against last season's runners-up, and prior to that defeat, they had won their last 10 games across all competitions.

At home, Lens have conceded a joint-league-low four goals, winning to nil five times, including in their last four.

Today's Football Fixtures

Le Havre, meanwhile, have struck just five times on their travels; only Auxerre (four) have scored fewer away goals in Ligue 1.

Le Club Doyen have lost five of their nine away matches, drawing three times and winning just once, and in four of their defeats, they have failed to score, so a home win to nil appeals here at 5/4.

Player to Receive a Card - Lucas Gourna-Douath (RCL) @ 23/10

French midfielder Lucas Gourna-Douath, who joined Le Havre on loan from Austrian outfit Red Bull Salzburg earlier this month, made his debut in last Saturday's goalless draw at AS Monaco, playing the duration of the match.

The 22-year-old committed a single foul and avoided going into the referee's notebook, but he's regularly fallen foul of refereeing standards since starting his professional career with St. Etienne in 2020.

With the French club, he was shown 15 yellow cards across the 2020/21 (eight) and 2021/22 (seven) seasons, before leaving for Salzburg, for whom he was shown 18 yellows and one red in 64 Austrian Bundesliga appearances, including a couple of cautions in four games earlier in 2025/26.

The 22-year-old was also booked twice in six Serie A outings on loan at AS Roma last season, the same campaign in which he was handed five yellows in 10 Uefa Champions League matches.

Away to one of the best teams in Ligue 1, Le Havre will need their players to play out of their skin if they want to achieve a positive result, and they will need to show plenty of fight in midfield.

Gourna-Douath has plenty of that in him, but his overeagerness to retrieve the ball could cost him.