OGC Nice faces the last-place team, Troyes, tonight at the Allianz Riviera. The Eagles must win to continue their fight for European spots. However, this season, Nice is wary of the “easy prey.”
This season in Ligue 1, there are no hierarchies or privileged teams. Behind PSG, everyone has a chance and fights hard. Yet Troyes seems destined for relegation. From the beginning of the season, the Troyens have struggled the most in the league and are the top candidates to exit. But, as always, a wounded beast is dangerous. With little hope, Troyes still has its pride. With little hope, Troyes especially doesn’t feel much pressure anymore.
The pressure, however, is all over Nice. Having had an outstanding first half of the season, the Eagles even made a few appearances on the podium in recent weeks before dropping down on the last matchday. With Caen’s draw against Monaco and while awaiting Lyon-Guingamp, Nice can climb back to third place. And for that, the man who has changed everything, Hatem Ben Arfa, will indeed be present. In the squad, the former Magpie is expected to play. The magical trio from the start of the season with Germain and Plรฉa would finally be reunited.
In the final stretch of this championship, it is now that this Nice team will show what it really has in its belly. Whether they can make their beautiful play a model of efficiency and how the young players will maintain their efforts throughout the season. Against Bastia last week, the signs were not very positive. Having put that blow behind them, victory is imperative to resume progress and not let Lyon or Saint-Etienne settle on a podium that the Eagles can still dream of.
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