OGC Nice, without Hatem Ben Arfa (contract not yet validated), is traveling to Bordeaux this Friday (8:30 PM). The Eagles still remember the first leg match punctuated by numerous refereeing errors but mainly wish to confirm the victory against Lorient with a rediscovered style of play.
This time, the year is truly underway. Trailing in the score against Lorient, the Eagles showed character to come back and win. More than that, Nice was good in their game thanks to an excellent Carlos Eduardo and was effective in front of the goal. It was a challenge to beat a team fighting for survival, and it will be a challenge to take points in Bordeaux.
“It’s good to have had this reaction against Lorient. The group has character, but it needs to assert it with more regularity. The players need to grow mentally and emotionally. We’re going to Bordeaux to get a good result,” admitted Claude Puel in a press conference this week.
As we now know, Nice will fly to Gironde without Hatem Ben Arfa in the midst of a regulatory tangle. A decision from the League on Tuesday will determine if Nice’s number 4 will be definitively an Eagle. Claude Puel will also have to do without Mathieu Bodmer, who was injured in the calf during training. He joins Digard and Traoré in the infirmary. Lloyd Palun will start with Gabon, Saturday, in his Africa Cup of Nations debut against Burkina Faso.
Nice away this season has been a hit or miss (a 3-2 victory at Caen, a very average loss 2-0 at Lens and Valenciennes in the CDF). But Bordeaux, at home, is solid except for the thrashing before the holidays against Lyon (a 5-0 loss). Indeed, this season, they have lost only once at Chaban-Delmas, with six wins and two draws.
On the Girondins side, there are many absentees. Many injuries and not insignificant ones: Diabaté, top scorer, Ilori, and Jussiê. Not to mention five players at AFCON, including captain Lamine Sané, plus Khazri, Poko, Saivet, and Traoré.
Willy Sagnol’s men come off a very dull 0-0 at Monaco and a qualification in the 16th of CDF, a week earlier. In the first leg, Bordeaux won 3-1, a match that still leaves its mark on the Nice squad. Mr. Lannoy disallowed two “valid” goals for the red and black. The stands of the Allianz Riviera roared. There’s a sense of revenge in the air. With a five-point lead over the relegation zone, Nice is not out of danger but breathes easier.
“That first leg match is stuck here (he points to his throat) and I’m not the only one. But the goal is not ‘vendetta’; it’s to win or at least bring back a point. Last Saturday, there were good things in the game, character, and efficiency; it’s a defining match. The squad is truly eager to raise their level of play,” explained Romain Genevois.
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