FC Nantes - AS Monaco

- Kick-off: 19:00 GMT

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Minamino is a man in form. The Japan international struggled at times after arriving from Liverpool last summer, but has hit the ground running in 2023/24 with four goal-involvements from two games so far, helping Monaco to the top of the Ligue 1 Uber Eats table.

Minamino assisted Vanderson for Monaco's first goal of the season in last Sunday's 4-2 win at Clermont Foot 63, and helped himself to a brace in this Sunday's 3-0 win over Patrick Vieira's Chelsea-backed RC Strasbourg Alsace before setting up Wissam Ben Yedder for the third and final goal.

Minamino aiming high

Monaco could only finish sixth last season, six points behind Olympique de Marseille in the fourth and final Champions League place, but Minamino is confident they can finish higher this season, even at this early stage of the campaign.

"I just feel great," the attacking midfielder told Monaco's official website. "I feel very good feelings since preseason and at the start of the league. We have a new coach and a different style of play, maybe that's why my performance is improving.

Watch: Highlights of Monaco's 3-0 win over Strasbourg

"As a team, we want to finish as high as possible and compete in the Champions League next year. Personally, I want to play well in every game, while scoring as many goals and having as many assists as possible."

New Monaco head coach Adi Hutter is unlikely to change much in his starting XI, with Minamino joined by Ben Yedder and Aleksandr Golovin in the Austrian's first two league games since arriving from Borussia Monchengladbach.

Embolo injured

Former Gladbach striker Breel Embolo is one of Hutter's few injury concerns. The Swiss has a ruptured ACL. He is joined on the sidelines by Mohammed Salisu (groin) and Edan Diop (foot).

While Monaco have won their first two games, Nantes have lost theirs, and are in the relegation play-off as things stand, with a better goal-difference than Clermont and Olympique Lyonnais below them.

Watch: Highlights of Nantes' 2-0 loss to LOSC

Les Canaris were beaten 2-0 by LOSC last Sunday, even though their hosts had gone down to 10 men in the 78th minute with Alexsandro's sending off, with Jonathan David and Adam Ouna on target for Lille.

Nantes had 14 shots on goal to their opponents' 18, and club captain Pedro Chirivella doesn't see any need to panic, questioning any pressure being put on his manager Pierre Aristouy.

Chirivella: Nantes not far off

"We have to pick up points as quickly as possible, but we have a difficult run," he conceded. "I don't really understand [the pressure on Aristouy]. We've only played two games. There are things to improve, but it's normal in this period, and there are also positive things. It shouldn't take much to turn things around."

Nantes lost Alban Lafont to a fractured rib in their opening day defeat to his former club Toulouse FC, so Rémy Descamps will continue in goal with Denis Petric as his back-up. Would-be first-teamers Ignatius Ganago and Fabien Centonze are both out with hamstring injuries, while youngster Nathan Zézé has appendicitis.

Possible teams

Nantes: Descamps; Castelletto, Pierre-Gabriel, Pallois; Coco, Douglas, Chirivella, Merlin; Mollet; Mohamed, Simon

Monaco: Kohn; Singo, Zakaria, Magassa; Vanderson, Fofana, Camara, Caio; Minamino, Golovin; Ben Yedder