This Sunday, OGC Nice travels once again to FC Nantes, as part of the 19th matchday of Ligue 1. On the field of a low-ranked team, the Gym has no room for error, at the risk of definitively sinking in the race to avoid relegation. All the pre-match information for this encounter can be discovered here.
Do not sink in the race to avoid relegation! This trip to Nantes (kick-off this Sunday at 3 PM at the Beaujoire) is already crucial for the rest of the season for OGC Nice. Currently 15th in Ligue 1, Claude Puel’s men are beginning to look over their shoulders and realize that danger is seriously approaching, weekend after weekend. For three months, the Gym has not won in Ligue 1, and is not moving up in the standings. As this 19th matchday of the championship dawns, the Aiglons are only four points ahead of the current team in the play-off spot, a certain… FC Nantes! Sunday’s match is shaping up to be crucial between two low-ranked contenders, who will certainly want to distance themselves from the relegation zone.
In these difficult conditions, OGC Nice also has several positive signs recently. This Thursday, Morgan Sanson’s teammates ended an improbable negative streak, finally winning in the Europa League. The Niçois also marked the first victory of Claude Puel’s second era. Traveling to Nantes has also smiled upon the Gym this season. Two weeks ago, the Aiglons won — after a decisive penalty shoot-out — against the Canaries, in the round of 16 in the Coupe de France. Winning at the Beaujoire, Nice knows the formula. There is only left to reproduce it this Sunday, to conclude one of the rare positive weeks of the season from the Azurean team.
Towards a return of Diouf and Mendy?
Unlike the last few weeks, Claude Puel could rely on several returns for this new Ligue 1 match. The first name is Dante. After several weeks of absence, the red-and-black captain returned to competition, playing the last quarter-hour of the European victory against Go Ahead Eagles (3-1). The Gym coach could also count on the returns of Antoine Mendy and Yehvann Diouf. The two recent African champions returned to training this Friday. Starter in the AFCON final, last weekend, the first only had an individual session with adapted recovery. The goalkeeper, meanwhile, was able to take part in the entire session with the goalkeepers, even playing in a match with his teammates.
On the injury front, Sofiane Diop, Mohamed Abdelmonem, Youssouf Ndayishimiye, and Moïse Bombito are not yet healed enough to hope to play in this match. Suffering from adductor problems, Melvin Bard remains uncertain. A return for the left-back, who was absent in the Europa League this Thursday, was hoped for in this lower-table clash. Other players ailing this week, such as Isak Jansson, could be back in the squad for OGC Nice.
On the opposite side, FC Nantes holds the 16th place in Ligue 1, and is provisionally in the play-off spot. As with recent seasons, the Canaries are having a complicated campaign in the championship. Matthis Abline’s teammates have also experienced a coaching change with the arrival of Ahmed Kantari. Since the former defender’s arrival, the Nantes team have shown that they can pull off upsets, such as this victory in Marseille (0-2) on January 4. But Nantes clearly lacks consistency in its performances. Unable to win at home, the club hasn’t won at the Beaujoire in 140 days, nearly five months.
The probable line-ups:
Nantes: Lopes – Amian, Sissoko, Awaziem, Tati, Cozza – Lepenant, Mwanga – Abline, El-Arabi, Cabella
Nice: Mendy – Clauss, Bah, Mantsounga (or Dante), Abdi – Sanson, Vanhoutte, Ndombele – Cho, Wahi, Gouveia.
