Coupe de France: 5 things to watch this weekend
Ahead of the Round of 32 of the Coupe de France this weekend, we give you the latest on the biggest storylines involving the clubs of Ligue 1 McDonald's.
A big debut for Lyon?
While he's unlikely to start for Olympique Lyonnais, the club's newest player, Real Madrid loanee Endrick, will be available for manager Paulo Fonseca as Les Gones face LOSC on the road in what is the highest-profile of the round's 16 matches. Fonseca's tactics -- which have to date used a lone striker -- will likely need some tweaking to accommodate the Brazil international, but given Lyon's struggles in front of goal, the manager will surely be more than willing to make that change.
Endrick continues the Brazilian legacy at Lyon 🇧🇷💫 pic.twitter.com/wrtWOwCcmV
— Ligue 1 English (@Ligue1_ENG) December 23, 2025
Derby Redux
After a nervy encounter in Ligue 1 McDonald's on Sunday, which PSG edged 2-1 "Les Voisins" will renew their hostilities once more at the Parc des Princes. While Paris FC will still be without key players like Ilan Kebbal, Moses Simon and Hamari Traoré owing to AFCON, they won't have played in midweek, as Paris Saint-Germain did in yesterday's Trophée des Champions. Could the promoted side spring an upset against a tired opponent? We'll find out on Monday night.
A new face on the bench for RCSA
Following the departure of Liam Rosenior to Chelsea, the Alsatian club have moved to appoint another Englishman, Gary O'Neil. While his tenures at Bournemouth and Wolverhampton Wanderers saw somewhat mixed success, he is also the kind of forward-thinking manager who can help the young squad get to grips with their attacking ideas, and this cup match could be ideal to restore confidence.
😤 First session with the new boss! 😤 pic.twitter.com/bBXLQ1jtFl
— Racing Club de Strasbourg Alsace English (@RCSA_English) January 8, 2026
Nice, Nantes look to build form
The third all-Ligue 1 McDonald's match this weekend pits OGC Nice against FC Nantes. Like Racing, they also have recently installed managers (Claude Puel and Ahmed Kantari), albeit who have overseen a few matches to date. Both have both progressed in this competition comfortably and impressed in getting strong results in the league at the weekend. Doing the same against a top-tier opponent would be a further feather in their caps
An unwelcome distraction for the leaders?
Lens have been mightily impressive this season and have won each of their last seven matches as they've edged ahead of champions Paris Saint-Germain. However, with key absentees owing to AFCON (Mamadou Sangaré) and injury (Odsonne Édouard), Pierre Sage may be tempted to rotate his side here, given how thin his squad is and the importance of the team's match against Marseille in a fortnight's time.
