Here we go again! The French Ligue 1 Championship kicks off again starting Saturday. Having narrowly avoided relegation last May (finished 17th), OGC Nice is set to host OL at the Stade du Ray. However, the morale of the supporters has been significantly boosted by the arrival of a new strong man at the head of the club: Jean-Pierre Rivère. With increased resources and ambitions, Nice is embarking on new foundations.
At the dawn of the new Ligue 1 season, OGC Nice has undergone a tumultuous summer. For good reason: a new shareholder, Jean-Pierre Rivère, has arrived at the helm of the Azurean club (51%).
The businessman’s investment amounts to around ten million euros, allowing the Gym to expand its ambitions.
Now, maintaining their place in the league is no longer the topic of discussion. This summer’s recruitment (Monzon, R. Fernandez, Digard, K. Gomis, Meriem, Abriel) is in line with this approach.
Nice supporters could already see against Udinese that Fabian Monzon and Camel Meriem are proving useful to Eric Roy’s setup. However, Roy is still working on bringing in a forward to support the only existing strikers, Eric Mouloungui and Mickaël Poté.
Lyon will not be on conquered ground
Despite an incomplete squad, OGC Nice seems built to face Lyon on Saturday at the Stade du Ray. Having finished third last year, Jean-Michel Aulas’s protégés have entered a new era.
After the dismissal of Claude Puel, the novice Rémi Garde was appointed technical director due to the lack of a coaching diploma.
Since then, recruitment has stalled. The non-replacement of Jérémy Toulalan’s departure to Malaga has been felt during the Gônes’ preparation. A youth policy has taken over the arrival of stars that the club had specialized in for some time (more than 100 million euros spent during the three-year Puel era!).
With a scarcely reshuffled and inexperienced squad, the 2011-2012 version of Lyon advances cautiously but risks getting pecked by the electrified Aiglons.
