Dunkerque vs Caen Prediction & Betting Tips (16 December)

Who would have imagined Dunkirk playing the leading roles in this Ligue 2 before the launch of this 2024-2025 season? Certainly not many people. And yet, the Maritimes are at the foot of the podium at the start of this 16th day and they seem able to have their say in the race for the climb. Building on their excellent performances at home, the Northerners were able to string together 3 victories in a row against Amiens 3-1, Grenoble 0-1 and Ajaccio 1-0. However, they ended up losing last week at the end of the match against Metz 2-0, not helped by questionable refereeing.

On the side of Caen on the other hand, it is clearly a grimace soup for the moment. While we could have cited it among the teams capable of having ambitions in this Ligue 2, Malherbe is lagging in the second half of the table, with only 15 points to its credit after so many days, the same total as the first relegation. Never able to string together a very good series, Nicolas Seube's men were able to get rid of Martigues 0-3 and Bastia 2-0 but they quickly plunged again by stringing together 3 unsuccessful matches against Metz 1-0, Rodez 3 -3 and Laval 1-0 last week.

Among the Dunkirks, coach Luis Castro still has the chance to count on all of his strength to compete in this meeting. Consequently, we should certainly find center forward Yacine Bammou (part of Caen in particular), who has scored 4 goals and delivered 2 assists this season, at the kick-off. On the left side, the former Stéphanois Rivera (3 goals) should retain the confidence of his coach, just like the Dutchman Tejan (4 assists) who did not play last week. In the heart of the game, Finnish midfielder Skyttä (4 goals) is also being talked about.

If Dunkirk is at full strength, the same cannot be said of Caen who still has to deal with quite a few absences. The potential holder Lamine Sy, the former French international M'Vila, the central defender Traoré, the young Tavares and Bagbema and the replacement striker Coulibaly will not be fit to play this match. Fortunately for them, the Normans should be able to count on the services of their center forward Alexandre Mendy (7 goals) or on the formidable Brahimi (3 goals, 2 assists) who are by far the best offensive assets of this formation.