A rather challenging draw for OGC Nice with Germany’s Schalke 04, Austria’s Salzburg, and Russia’s Krasnodar. Three strong teams and a first match against the group’s favorite on Thursday, September 15 at 9 PM at Allianz Riviera.
“It’s more than a complicated draw,” reacted Lucien Favre, before the match eve training session tonight against Lille.
Well aware of what awaits the Aiglons, the Swiss coach further explained: “Schalke is very, very, very complicated. It’s a good German team that has reinforced itself with tens of millions of euros this year. There are 60,000 spectators at every match, a very big club. Salzburg isn’t bad either… They’ve been Austrian champions for several years now (four out of the last five seasons, editor’s note). It’s a league of the same level as the Netherlands or Switzerland, so think of teams like Ajax or Basel for comparison. Finally, Krasnodar is also a strong team that consistently achieves results in Russia as well as in European competitions.”
Three formidable opponents for OGC Nice, which is discovering the group stage for the first time and will have to, after hosting Schalke on the first day (09/15/2016), learn to travel. The next Thursday, October 20, they will face FK Krasnodar in Russia, then host Red Bull Salzburg (11/20/2016). The Austrian side will then come to Nice (11/03/2016) for the return matches, followed by the away game at Schalke 04 (09/15/2016), and finally, they will host FK Krasnodar (12/08/2016).
The present to put under the Christmas tree would be one of the top two places in a group that will be challenging for a team from the South of France as they head east to try and shine their colors in the European galaxy.
A tough task indeed but a highly interesting challenge for this new-look OGC Nice, which, with two wins in two matches in Ligue 1 and the arrival of Dante, is on a more than positive trajectory.
But, the time has come to return to national competitions, and no doubt, after analyzing and dissecting this draw for a few hours and dreaming about the upcoming Europa League meetings, the group refocused quickly on hosting Lille tonight in the future European “nest” of Nice.
Photo credit and more information at www.ogcnice.com
