Lille coach Rudi Garcia will be hoping that his side's attacking flair can make up for defensive deficiencies when the reigning champions travel to troubled Bordeaux on Tuesday.
The northern club have squandered winning positions at home twice in the last week, with CSKA Moscow and Sochaux both fighting back to draw 2-2.
If the former result leaves Lille already up against it in Champions League Group B, Garcia preferred to consider the Sochaux stalemate a point gained after the hosts were forced to play much of the second-half with ten men following the sending-off of Mathieu Debuchy.
Debuchy will join Dimitri Payet on the sidelines at the Stade Chaban-Delmas, with Aurelien Chedjou also expected to miss out.
A watertight backline was as much a feature of Lille's run to the title last season as their flowing attacking football, but Garcia admits that his side are likely to remain vulnerable throughout what is a hectic month of September.
"I think we will continue conceding goals. It's logical when you look at the players we are missing and the ones who are not 100 percent," he said.
"We will be able to assess the defence only when I have everyone available for a run of several matches."
At least Bordeaux are also looking vulnerable just now. The 2009 champions have won just once this season under new coach Francis Gillot, and blew a 2-0 lead to lose 3-2 in the Garonne derby at Toulouse on Saturday.
Gillot will be without goalkeeper Cedric Carrasso after his sending-off on Saturday, but the Bordeaux coach is hopeful his side can take advantage of Lille's hectic schedule.
"We will have to run more than usual to get the ball back, press hard and use up lots of energy," he said.
"They have played a lot of games in a short space of time, and might have a little less energy than usual so we must take advantage of that."
Lille can go level on points with leaders Lyon if they win before Remi Garde's side visit Caen on Wednesday.
OL maintained their unbeaten start to the campaign by beating crisis club Marseille at the weekend, and replaced Montpellier at the Ligue 1 summit in the process.
Montpellier visit Ajaccio, while Toulouse go to Saint-Etienne in a game that sees Emmanuel Riviere - scorer of Toulouse's injury-time winner at the weekend on his debut - return to face the club he left in the summer.
Paris Saint-Germain slipped to fifth after having to settle for a draw at Evian at the weekend, and the capital club will hope to get back to winning ways when they entertain Nice.
"We are not losing games, we are moving forward," said an upbeat PSG coach Antoine Kombouare after his side battled back from two goals down to draw 2-2 at Evian.
"Now it's up to us to validate this point by winning at home against Nice."
Last season's Ligue 2 champions have lost just once so far in their debut top-flight campaign, leaving them in mid-table while Wednesday's opponents Marseille, incredibly, lie rock-bottom.
It is the first time in 33 years that OM have been at the foot of the table six games into a season, and their coach Didier Deschamps can surely ill-afford anything other than a first league victory when Evian travel to the Stade Velodrome, even if president Vincent Labrune dismissed speculation surrounding his future at the weekend.
"We have the necessary weapons to bounce back very quickly. We need to stick together and stay calm," Labrune said. "Didier Deschamps' position is not under threat. He has the keys here for a long time to come."
It remains to be seen if the discourse will remain the same should French football's best-supported club slip up once more against the team that put them out of the French Cup last season.
OM midfielder Benoit Cheyrou will miss the game with an adductor injury.
Fixtures
Tuesday (1900GMT)
Bordeaux v Lille
Wednesday (1700GMT unless stated)
AC Ajaccio v Montpellier, Caen v Lyon, Dijon v Brest, Lorient v Auxerre, Marseille v Evian, Nancy v Valenciennes, Paris Saint-Germain v Nice, Sochaux v Rennes, Saint-Etienne v Toulouse (1900GMT)
Source: AFP
