After claiming their first win under new coach Adrian Ursea in midweek, OGC Nice are hoping to put a further spanner in the works of Olympique Lyonnais’ title challenge when the sides meet on Saturday.
OGC Nice - Olympique Lyonnais Saturday 21:00 CET (2000 GMT)
It has been a difficult few weeks for Nice but they ended a run of eight games without a win in all competitions by beating Nîmes Olympique 2-0 at the Stade des Costières on Wednesday, despite having Morgan Schneiderlin sent off early in the second half. Dan Ndoye and Alexis Claude-Maurice scored late goals for Les Aiglons, who had failed to find the net in any of their three previous matches since Patrick Vieira was sacked and his former assistant Ursea was appointed in his place.
Nice had not won since beating Angers 3-0 away at the start of November, on the day veteran skipper Dante was taken off in distress with a serious knee injury. It is no coincidence that their form nosedived in the absence of the Brazilian defender, and now they must do without the experience of the suspended Schneiderlin too for the visit of OL to the Allianz Riviera.
That is a problem, when you consider that eight of their starters in Nîmes were aged between 19 and 24. All three substitutes used were aged 22 or younger. It shows how young a side Ursea is dealing with, but Nice are for now safely ensconced in mid-table, three points behind RC Lens in seventh coming into the weekend.
Positive vibes
“We have stopped our bad run. We didn’t concede a goal, we created chances ourselves and scored twice,” said a satisfied Ursea after the victory over the Crocodiles. “We had a diminished squad but these youngsters showed lots of character and got the job done. They took their chance.”
Highlights: Nice claim welcome win at Nîmes
The Romanian added: “I felt positive vibes before the match and a real determination among the players. I wasn’t wrong, but we are not going to start going around with our chests puffed out. It is just one victory that we are going to savour, but we have another match coming up now against Lyon.”
They will be hoping to have Kasper Dolberg back here after the Danish striker missed the midweek game with a slight adductor problem. The ex-Ajax man has only scored three goals this season though, with two coming in the win at RC Strasbourg Alsace in August.
Depay back in line-up?
Firepower is not something that Lyon are lacking at the moment, with their front three of Memphis Depay, Karl Toko-Ekambi and Tino Kadewere all in fine form. However, some of the momentum was knocked out of their title push on Wednesday when they were held to a 2-2 draw at home by Stade Brestois 29.
They are now 12 games unbeaten, but that was a hugely disappointing result for Rudi Garcia’s side, coming so soon after they beat Paris Saint-Germain 1-0 in Paris to blow open the title race.
Highlights: Lyon denied by Brest
It will not have been lost on Garcia that his decision to hand a start against Brest to the misfiring Moussa Dembélé - with Depay rested at kick-off - did not work out. The Dutchman came on to score his 50th Ligue 1 goal and seems certain to return to the starting XI at the Allianz Riviera, as Lyon look to put pressure on LOSC and Paris before the top two clash on Sunday.
“I don’t regret having rotated the squad,” Garcia said after the Brest game in which Mattia De Sciglio and Maxence Caqueret also came into the side. “The players who came on later really helped change the result. Memphis first of all, (Lucas) Paqueta as well. Rayan (Cherki) also did well when he came on.”
Garcia added: “We shouldn’t have thrown the victory away but we have two matches left in 2020 and we are targeting six points.”
Probable teams
Nice: Benitez - Lotomba, Daniliuc, Nsoki, Bamba - Kamara, Thuram, Ndoye - Reine-Adelaide (c), Lopes, Gouiri
Lyon: Lopes - Dubois, Denayer, Marcelo, Cornet - Aouar, Paqueta, Guimaraes - Toko-Ekambi, Depay (c), Kadewere
