Ajaccio.......Top scorer last season Nouri 6 // consecutive seasons in L2 =5 , last in L1 =13/14 // budget last and this season 10.5m /  // L2 points last season: first 19 games =21, second 19 games = 19

 

Auxerre......4 players with 4 // consecutive seasons in L2 =7 , last in L1 =11/12 // budget last and this season 21m /   // L2 points last season: first 19 games =23, second 19 games = 18

 

Caen.........Ninga 6 / Crivelli 6 // consecutive seasons in L2 =0 , last in L1 =18/19 // budget last and this season 34m/

 

Chambly.....Correa 13 / Doucoure 8 // consecutive seasons in L2 =0 , last in L1 = 0 // budget last and this season 2.2m/

 

Chateauroux....Bourillon 8 // consecutive seasons in L2 =2 , last in L1 =97/98 // budget last and this season 8.5m/   // L2 points last season: first 19 games =22, second 19 games = 26

 

Clermont.........Aye 18 // consecutive seasons in L2 =10+ , last in L1 =0 // budget last and this season 6.8m/  // L2 points last season: first 19 games =29, second 19 games = 19  -10 points

 

Grenoble .......Sotoca 11 / Chergui 8 // consecutive seasons in L2 =1 , last in L1 =09/10 // budget last and this season 8m/  // L2 points last season: first 19 games =31, second 19 games = 19 -12 points

 

Guingamp........Thuram-Ulien 9 // consecutive seasons in L2 =0 , last in L1 =18/19 // budget last and this season 30m/

 

Le Havre.............Gory 8 // consecutive seasons in L2 =10+ , last in L1 =08/09 // budget last and this season 14m/   // L2 points last season: first 19 games =28, second 19 games = 26

 

Le Mans...........Crehin 10 // consecutive seasons in L2 =0 , last in L1 =09/10 // budget last and this season 4.5m /

 

Lens............Gomis 16 // consecutive seasons in L2 =4 , last in L1 =14/15 // budget last and this season 36m/  // L2 points last season: first 19 games =32, second 19 games = 31

 

Lorient...........Claude-Maurice 14 // consecutive seasons in L2 =2 , last in L1 = 16/17 // budget last and this season 12m/  // L2 points last season: first 19 games =31, second 19 games = 32

 

Nancy.............Bassi / Vagner 6 // consecutive seasons in L2 =2 , last in L1 =16/17 // budget last and this season 17m/  // L2 points last season: first 19 games =13, second 19 games = 29 +16 points

 

Niort ..............Ndoh 13 // consecutive seasons in L2 =7 , last in L1 =87/88 // budget last and this season 9.5m/  // L2 points last season: first 19 games =32, second 19 games = 15 -17 points

 

Orleans.............Tell 7  / Le Tallec 7 // consecutive seasons in L2 =3 , last in L1 =0 // budget last and this season 7.8m /  // L2 points last season: first 19 games =26, second 19 games = 26

 

Paris FC...........Wamangituca 11 // consecutive seasons in L2 =2 , last in L1 =78/79 // budget last and this season 12.5m /  // L2 points last season: first 19 games =32, second 19 games = 33

 

Rodez.............David 11 / Bonnet 9 // consecutive seasons in L2 =0 , last in L1 =0 // budget last and this season 2.1m/

 

Sochaux...........2 players with 4 // consecutive seasons in L2 =5 , last in L1 =13/14 // budget last and this season 16 m/  // L2 points last season: first 19 games =20, second 19 games = 21

 

Troyes...................Touzghar 14 / Fortune 12 / Mbeumo // consecutive seasons in L2 =1 , last in L1 =17/18 //  budget last and this season 13m/  // L2 points last season: first 19 games =29, second 19 games = 42 +13 pts

 

Valenciennes ..............Rappentino 11 / Robail 10 // consecutive seasons in L2 =5 , last in L1 =13/14 // budget last and this season 9.5 m // L2 points last season: first 19 games =20, second 19 games = 23

 

 

Last season's top scorers are shown in the first column, those in blue have already been transferred, there is always interest in goal scorers so we can expect one or two more to depart, so I will continue to update that. For example, Bryan Mbeumo of Troyes is much admired and there have been several offers and I know 100% that Brentford made a bid for him last week, although it was below the 6.5m euros reported in the French press.

 

 

I will also have to "fill in" the budgets for this year, hopefully by Friday, teams tend not to change too much in another season at the same level, for example, I understand that Lens have trimmed theirs, but only slightly. Teams coming up from National tend to treble their spend, Le Mans are interesting, after big financial troubles they are on the up, had the biggest budget in the third tier last season (twice that of the other two promoted teams) and have played top tier football quite recently.

 

Money talks in football and whilst a big budget is no guarantee of success, it is tough to do too much on a tiny one. Last season the two promoted teams had a top 6 budget and another lost in the playoff final and the three relegated teams all had bottom five budgets.

 

Last column above details points picked up in the first and second half of last season in L2 (obviously the promoted and relegated teams were at another level and almost certainly playing well/poorly respectively over the second half of the campaign). The most noteworthy "swings" have been highlighted in blue.

 

Chambly are in their first ever season at this level, they will play home games at two "neutral" venues with their own ground not at L2 standard.

 

Similarly Rodez will play in Toulouse for the first six months of the new campaign.