2026–2027 Preseason Friendlies: Saint-Étienne vs. Venezia—Probable Lineups
This is the second consecutive international friendly for Venezia, newly promoted to Serie A, which—following its resounding 3-0 victory over Galatasaray—now faces Saint-Étienne, a French club striving to return to its former glory, aiming once again for promotion to Ligue 1 after losing the playoff last May to Nice. The match will be played at 5 p.m. on Saturday, behind closed doors, at the Divonne-les-Bains Sports Center.
The Greens, coached by Scotsman Ian Cathro (who spent the past two years at Estoril, in Portugal), got off to a somewhat slow start this summer, drawing 2-2 against Biel (a Swiss third-division team) before losing 1-0 to another Swiss side, Servette, and 2-1 to Glasgow Rangers. A few days ago, on July 29, however, they secured a decisive 4-0 victory over Lausanne that galvanized the team: another positive result against the Venice side would reignite enthusiasm ahead of their second consecutive season in Ligue 2.
On the other hand, Venezia is hoping for another big result following their 4-2 victory over Dolomiti Bellunesi, an 8-0 win over Vis Pesaro, and a hat trick against Galatasaray, courtesy of Yeboah and Lauerbach (the latter scoring twice) in the final twenty minutes of the match. Stroppa will most likely opt for a 3-5-2 formation, with Basic running the show in midfield and an attack featuring, at least initially, Albion Rrahmani and Alvin Okoro—the latter looking to score his first goal of this preseason.
Probable Lineups
SAINT ETIENNE (4-2-3-1): Larsonneur; Kevin Pedro, Le Cardinal, Bernauer, Appiah; Kante, Gadegbeku; Cardona, Boakye, Davitashvili; Stassin. Coach: Cathro.
VENEZIA (3-5-2): Stankovic; Schingtienne, Bella-Kotchap, Franjic; Correia, Dagasso, Basic, Kike Perez, Hainaut; Rrahmani, Okoro. Head Coach: Stroppa.
