Four days before the end of the Ligue 2 championship, the race to climb to Ligue 1 is tighter than ever. From Troyes, leader, to Auxerre sixth, six teams stand on 14 points. This end of the Ligue 2 season promises to be more than exciting to determine the champion, the teams with direct access for the elite and the barragists. As a reminder, only the first two places give direct tickets for Ligue 1, places from 3 to 5 sending the teams concerned to the play-offs.
1st: ESTAC de Troyes (68 points)
Estac seems the best placed team and in the best dynamic to access Ligue 1. They have 68 points after 34 Ligue 2 BKT games this season, each of the 16 teams with at least as many points at this stage in the division under the single pool (1993/94) finished in the top two places in the table. Nevertheless, Laurent Battles' players can hope for better by winning this Ligue 2 title. The Trojans could win a second time in their history this title after the 2014-2015 season where they totally dominated this championship. After their 3-0 victory in Niort on Tuesday, there are still 4 games and 12 points to go. The Aubois have the keys in their hands and will have to win their confrontations against Grenoble in a shock, then against Châteauroux, Dunkirk and Le Havre at the end of this season This season, Troyes is performing well thanks to a supportive, complementary and balanced team. Without a doubt, this is the team that produces the best football in this league. Note that the Trojans have scored in each of their last 15 games (24 goals in total). Tunisian striker Touzghar had a very good season with 12 goals and 4 assists. 
2nd: Clermont Foot 63 (63 points)
After a fifth place last year (in a context where the championship stopped because of the health context), the Clermontois hope this time to win their ticket for Ligue 1. The latter have just won an extremely important direct confrontation 1-0 against Paris FC in the race for the rise. While waiting for the match of Toulouse against Le Havre, it is the second place of Ligue 2 that is offered to them. And with one point ahead of Toulouse and two ahead of Grenoble, the match in Isère, on May 1st, promises to be explosive in this race to the climb. Pascal Gastien's men have 63 points after 34 league games, which is at least 8 more than in any other season in its history at this stage under the single pool. Clermont is a collective and quite spectacular team that is very effective in both surfaces. Indeed, thanks in particular to an iron defense Ogier / Hountondji it is the best defense of the championship with only 20 goals conceded in 34 games. In addition, the Clermontois are the 3rd best attack. They can thank the Guinean international Mohamed Bayo who is the top scorer in Ligue 2 with 19 goals and 5 assists. 
3rd: Toulouse FC (62 points)
The Toulouse club would like to find the elite as soon as possible, a year after leaving it with a place of red lantern. Toulouse remain on 9 wins at home. This is the best series in its history in the division under the single pool. Nevertheless, there is a contrast between home and away games. Intractable and impressive at home, but in great difficulty away from home, here is the summary of the year 2021 Toulouse. Without success away since the 21st day in Sochaux (0-1), TFC will have the opportunity to regain its second place and put pressure on the Trojans in case of victory against Pau on Saturday and Le Havre in the middle of next week. They will have to follow up during a clash against the PFC that will be decisive. However, with their 2-0 defeat against Rumilly-Vallières (N2) in the Coupe de France, Toulouse are strongly affected by Covid-19 and hope for the postponement of their next 2 games. Patrice Garande can count this season on a fairly solid team but especially with a football carried forward. His players have scored 61 goals after 33 league games. It's the best offense in the league. 15 goals have been scored from outside the box in Ligue 2 BKT this season, more than any other team. The 20-year-old nugget, Amine Adli (8 goals, 5 assists), is the revelation of the year on the TFC side. 
4th: Grenoble Foot 38 (61 points)
Grenoble is also a very serious contender for the rise in Ligue 1. He remains on only one defeat in his last 11 games in Ligue 2 BKT. The Grenoble have just won their match 2-0 against Sochaux on behalf of the 34th day. They are also unbeaten in their 17 home games this season (10 wins, 6 draws), making them the only unbeaten club in the division on home soil in 2020/21. The objective of direct climb seems complicated for the Isérois. A final ranking between 3rd and 5th place only allows an accession to play-offs, often fatal to the residents of Ligue 2. Philippe Hinschberger's men will have to make two very big performances away against the Trojan leader and the sixth in the AJA ranking. They will also receive during a shock, the team of Clermont and Rodez on the 38th day. This season, the Grenoble team continues to impress with their level of play displayed and their fourth place in the standings. They are a strong team, which explains their 2nd place in the best defenses in the championship. Only 29 goals conceded. The metronome of this team is Jessy Benet with 8 goals and 7 assists. 
5th: Paris FC (56 points)
Mission impossible for Paris FC to access the two places that directly allow access to the elite. They are 7 points behind Clermont (2nd). If they wish to access it, they will have to go through the roadblocks. They currently occupy the fifth place, synonymous with barragist. Nevertheless, it is an obstacle course then to access Ligue 1. Before their home defeat on April 20 against Clermont, PFC was on a run of last 9 games in Ligue 2 BKT without defeat (5 wins, 4 draws). His best series since October 2017-January 2018 (12). The Ile-de-France riders had started the final sprint perfectly. They will have four games including a shock against Toulouse at home in two weeks to hope to keep this place. AJA is in ambush with 54 points. René Girard's men are quite fickle. Indeed, after a big start to the season, the PFC has had a string of irregular results. Nevertheless, in recent games, they have put themselves back on the right path and that, at the best of times. The club's top scorer this season is Gaetan Laura with 8 goals and 5 assists. 
6th: AJ Auxerre (54 points)
Auxerre can also hope to join the elite of French football. Currently sixth, they can still hang on to fifth place, qualifying for the play-offs. They do not have the cards in hand but in view of the calendar of the Ile-de-France, everything is still playable. Only 2 points separate these two teams. For its part, the AJA will receive Dunkirk as well as Grenoble. They will travel twice, to Caen and Sochaux. Before their recent 3-0 defeat against Pau, Auxerrois had lost only once in the space of 11 games. After an 11th and 15th place in previous years, AJA is having a very good season. Nevertheless, this team is sometimes not balanced enough, with too many goals conceded. 39 goals. This is more than Le Havre (37) which is 13th in the championship. To compensate for this defensive fragility, AJA scored a lot of goals (58). It is the second best attack behind Toulouse (61). They can thank the experienced Le Bihan (2nd top scorer) with his 16 goals and 5 assists. Dugimont also had a big season with 12 goals. 
