After the harsh defeat in the derby (0-1, Monaco scoring in the 85th minute), Nice travels to Montpellier (5 PM), one of the in-form teams of 2015. The Eagles, who are on a streak of four matches without a win and without scoring, would be wise to pick up points to avoid putting themselves in danger.
An orange alert has not yet been triggered, but it could be at the end of the match in Hérault this Sunday afternoon. The euphoria of January (3 consecutive victories and a draw) has clearly faded, and doubts are reemerging. With two consecutive away games against in-form opponents (Montpellier and then Bastia), Nice has a very tough schedule and “only” a five-point lead over the first team in the relegation zone with this Saturday’s results.
“Yes, it’s been four games that we haven’t won, we need to quickly find victory to accumulate points. There haven’t been any goals in these last four games, that’s true, but we continue to work, and I know it will come back. We need to try to be more effective,” admitted Souleymane Diawara in a press briefing.
Coach Claude Puel will be able to count on the return of January’s player of the month: Eric Bauthéac, who was suspended against Monaco. Note the inclusion of Grégoire Puel in the squad, replacing Lloyd Palun, who was injured in the derby.
Defensively, the Gym has regained its form under the impetus of the highly in-form Diawara-Genevois duo. The former was even named “Eagle of the Month.” With 30 goals conceded in 26 games, the statistics are good. It’s rather on the attacking side that things are stuck. The Gym struggles to stay above the one goal per match mark (28 goals in 26 matches). The quartet Carlos Eduardo-Eysseric-Plea-Bauthéac only combines for 13 goals, an inefficiency that doesn’t allow the Eagles to aim higher.
“We need to get back on track. It’s not enough just to want to win, we need to put in the necessary ingredients and find quality in our sequences. It’s frustrating because we start games well but lack a bit of precision. We must be more effective. We have offensive players with quality, but they need to show even more,” explained Claude Puel to the press this Friday.
In Montpellier, everything is almost perfect. With a January identical to the Gym (10 points earned), Rolland Courbis’s men have solidified their position in the top half of the table. The Montpelliérains experienced a slight hiccup against Lille (2-1 defeat) but quickly bounced back at Guingamp (2-0 victory). Led by the Mounier-Barrios duo (12 goals between them), MHSC has the chance to move closer to the Top 4 in case of a victory, a position well above their pre-season objective.
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