Coupe de France Round of 16

Stade de la Beaujoire, Nantes

FC Nantes - Stade Brestois 29

- Kick-off at 21:00 CET (20:00 GMT)

Sitting ninth on the Ligue 1 Uber Eats table and having won 3-1 in the identical league fixture back in Round 7, Antone Kombouaré's FC Nantes side have every reason for confidence as northeastern rivals Stade Brestois come calling at the Stade de la Beaujoire in the Coupe de France round of 16 on Friday night.

However, Brest managed to get the better of reigning Ligue 1 Uber Eats champions LOSC 2-0 in Round 22 action on Saturday - thanks in no small part to a dazzling performance from 'keeper Marco Bizot - and will be looking to ride their momentum all the way into the coupe quarters.

Chirivella: 'Get on the front foot'

But Nantes' Spanish midfielder Pedro Chirivella feels that it is Les Canaris' confidence - they have won four of their last six league outings, including a 4-2 beating of Lorient in Round 22 - that will prove key.

"This is the cup. It's different as it's a knockout match. We just have to get on the front foot and go after the win right from the start," said the Spaniard, who struck against Brest in the league win. "I think we're on a great dynamic; we're confident and we want to continue our run in the coupe."

Der Zak: 'Hurt them when we can'

Meanwhile Brest boss Michel Der Zakarian also has designs on a place in the quarters, and he isn't too fussy about how his exciting young side get there.

"We want to make an impression in the Coupe de France, and to do so we need a win, be it in open play or on penalties," said the former FC Nantes coach. "It' up to us to play a good match against a side who are in form and who score a lot of goals at home. We have to find a way to be solid and to hurt them when we can."

The Brest boss will have to do without key midfielders Romain Faivre and Paul Lasne (both injured) in Nantes, while Kombouaré has a number of players - including powerful striker Kalifa Coulibaly - out on national-team duties at AFCON.

Probable teams

FC Nantes: Descamps; Fabio, Appiah, Girotto, Palloic (c), Merlin; Coco, Mojutoussamy, Chirivella; Blas, Kolo Muani

Stade Brestois 29: Larsonneur; Deuverne, Chardonnet (c), Hérelle, Uronen; Honorat, Agoumé, Belkebla, Le Douaron; Cardona, Satriano