There was an air of possibility both in the air and on the Lille lawn last night, and the Nice team did not return empty-handed at the cost of a match as unexpected as it was spectacular with the unusual final score of four goals each. With such tenacity and dedication, the coming year might be less bleak for the young eagles, who end 2011 on a truly positive note.
And yet hell was predicted for the players from the Azure Coast, beginning with a threatening Lille sky. It was Chedjou who played the role of the first little devil of the match by opening the score just before the 10th minute, igniting the Lille crowd for the first time. The stands’ fire was quickly extinguished, however, by an imperial Civelli who, well served by Hellebuyck, equalized just 5 minutes after the northern team’s first goal.
Balmont’s team then set their sights on Ospina’s goals, and it was the Englishman Joe Cole who was first to find the net at the half-hour mark after a sumptuous Lille passage of play. A harsh reality between one of the league’s top teams on their turf and one of its current relegation candidates who doesn’t travel well. But that was without considering Mouloungui’s performance, who, after showing some great moves at the start of the match, executed an improbable dribbling sequence that led him to serve Dja Djédjé, who catapulted the offering into the goal of Landreau, who was late coming out for once. An equalizer from the heart for the revived Nice players, who took control of the game by halftime. With the same players, the action continued as Mouloungui, truly unstoppable last night, tried his luck against Landreau who could only deflect the ball back to Dja Djédjé, who just had to tap it into the empty goal. The disillusioned Lille crowd couldn’t believe their eyes, and it was with the unexpected score of 3-2 in favor of OGC Nice that both teams went into the locker rooms.
The second half began as expected with an attack-defense phase, but the Azurean rearguard was vigilant while creating a few counterattack opportunities that could have once again favored Mouloungui, who this time sent his attempt over Landreau’s goal. Lille pushed, but Nice held firm, and as he was involved in all the right moves, Eric Mouloungui was also involved in the wrong ones, as he received another yellow card in the 70th minute, leading to an early return to the locker room. With ten against eleven, the Nice mission was now close to impossible!
With just over a quarter of an hour to play, Marsiglia’s men were on the back foot, and a new devil emerged from Lille’s game in the person of Hazard, who, with a fine technical exploit in the Nice penalty area, beat Ospina impeccably as he could only watch the ball die in his side netting. The equalizer was certainly deserved but was another blow for the Nice players, now reduced to ten. No time to breathe, and because one is never as well betrayed as by one’s own, it was a former young eagle, Balmont, who executed a superb chest control and a clear volley, crucifying Ospina to give an advantage that everyone wanted to believe was final, from the field to the bench as well as in the stands.
But it was said that this match would not be like the others, and on one of the last corners of the meeting on the Nice side, it was Clerc who took advantage of a mix-up in the Lille defense, who maybe already saw themselves warm in the locker room with three points in the bag, to offer an unexpected equalizer to his teammates, bringing back a precious point to the Côte d’Azur. The last minutes yielded no further result, and it was indeed an exploit that the Nice team achieved at Lille through courage and dedication that one would love to see again.
So, little Santa Claus….
