OGC Nice and Olympique Lyonnais ended up with a 1-1 draw last night at Parc OL. A good point for Nice, which could have hoped for much more.
For a long time, Nice believed they could seize second place last night in Lyon. It’s safe to say the scenario had everything to make this Friday evening the perfect night. Dominated in the first ten minutes of this clash between contenders for the podium, the Nice team didn’t crack at the start of the match. Solid, they even capitalized on a superb cross from Pléa to Germain to open the scoring in the 16th minute.
The match was already well underway and was about to swing again in favor of the red and blacks a few minutes later. In his stride, the Lyon player Maxwell Cornet collided head-on with Cardinale, who had come out to claim the ball. The excessive commitment of the young international forward was immediately punished with a red card by Mr. Jaffredo. Harsh considering the importance of this decision for the rest of the match, but logical given the dangerous nature of Cornet’s action. Less than 25 minutes into the game, Lyon was down to ten players and Nice was leading 1-0. For the “Aiglons,” second place had never been so close.
Except that OL hadn’t said their last word. They didn’t let themselves be disheartened. In a fiery atmosphere, Lacazette and his teammates launched a counterattack to stay in the game. Their awakening seemed fruitless, though, and Ben Arfa came very close, with an individual feat, to beating Lopes again and bringing OGC Nice even closer to success. Unsuccessful, his curling shot narrowly missed the post. The home team was fortunate.
Lyon not resigned
Undeterred, OL continued to push forward, much like their coach, whose offensive audacity contrasted with the defensive French football criticized by observers. Valbuena and Fakir entered the game for Lyon. All the offensive assets of the Gones were there. A rewarding choice. From a Valbuena free kick, the ball from the former Marseille player hit the bar and Lacazette, who had followed up, delighted in sending it into the net from close range.
The end of the match was also in Lyon’s favor against a Nice team that had clearly stopped playing, perhaps surprised by the opponent’s determination after a very complicated start to the match. It was a good opportunity for Nice to position themselves even better in this final sprint. The draw is not prohibitive and has the merit of maintaining the gap with Lyon at two points, pending the result of Monaco. More than ever, Nice has its chance. They just need to seize it fully.
