After two home victories that meant climbing up the standings, OGC Nice travels to Parc OL this Sunday at 20:45 to face Lyon. An interesting matchup for the Eagles against a European competitor who will have to manage their squad with three matches in one week.
OGC Nice has finally launched their 2026–2027 season. With two consecutive victories against Lille and Strasbourg, the Eagles, who were stuck in last place in the standings after four Ligue 1 matchdays, are now in 9th place. They will face Lyon this weekend, to try to extend this run.
Despite recent good results, the Azurian coach Olivier Pantaloni believes his squad is not yet at full potential: « there are physical differences between the players. Some had a truncated preparation because they were unwanted at their clubs. Everyone is improving physically, but some are still far from being at 100%. »
These differences in physical level were accentuated by the international break. A three-week break for some, a succession of matches on international duty for others, for the Nice staff, it was essential to adapt individual workload during the week to avoid the risk of injury.
« Ali Abdi felt a slight discomfort in his quadriceps this morning, so he didn’t train. Djibril Coulibaly was very tired, he played a lot on international duty, so he was eased at times during the week », said the Nice coach when taking stock of his troops, before adding: « there’s also Mohammed Amoura who is hyper generous at every training session, who’s always asking to go deep. He was eased during yesterday’s main session to limit this running volume and preserve freshness. »
A system that’s starting to work well
An unconditional devotee of 3-4-3, Olivier Pantaloni knows how demanding this system is for the wingbacks, who combine defensive and offensive duties. Against Strasbourg, it was the GYM’s right flank that made the difference, with an unstoppable Jonathan Clauss, well supported by Gauthier Hein.
Lacking rhythm at the start of the season, the Nice right wingback seems to have regained momentum, much to his coach’s delight: « Jonathan is an undeniable technical leader. At the start of the season, he had physical issues, with an angina that dragged on for a long time and prevented him from being at 100%. Now that’s resolved, and he’s the first one reassured. Mentally he questioned himself a lot and now he can completely let loose. »
On the left side, the partnership between Niels Nkounkou and Mohammed Amoura is still struggling to live up to all its promise. Present at the press conference, Niels Nkounkou opened up about his relationship with his left flank teammate, Mohammed Amoura: « I have a great relationship with Mohammed. There’s a connection that’s developing, we both know each other’s qualities. He has great pace, so ideally it’s about finding him in depth. »
For the young fullback, there’s no question of copying the technical relationship between Gauthier Hein and Jonathan Clauss on the right flank who have very different profiles: « Gauthier likes to come to the feet, combine with Jonathan, and they do it very well. With Mohammed it’s different, he likes to take the depth so we’re trying to play to his strengths. »
Lyon in sight
Nice face a Lyon side in form, 4th in Ligue 1, and performing in the Europa League with two wins in two matches. The only blemish on the Rhodanians’ record is the defeat against Lens on the last day of Ligue 1.
« I find this team very solid », Olivier Pantaloni said at yesterday’s press conference, « they don’t always apply much pressure, but they lull their opponents, make them run around, and exploit any weakness. Defensively, we’ll need to be vigilant ».
The last time the Nice players had won three consecutive victories in Ligue 1 was in October 2025, beating Lyon, Rennes and Lille. A twist of fate, the current run started against Lille, and could continue against Lyon with a victory. The Eagles, who beat the Lyonnais 3-2 at home on October 18, 2025, will face the same opponent, on the same date, a year later. Kickoff this Sunday at 21:00.
Probable lineups
OGC Nice: Diouf – Abdelmonem, Ndayishimiye, Mandza – Clauss, Boudaoui, Witsel (C), Nkounkou – Hein, Wahi, Amoura
Olympique Lyonnais : Greif – Athekame, Bacher, Niakhaté, Abner – Bidstrup, Morton, Tolisso (C) – Nuamah, Sulc, Nakamura
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