With only one victory in 5 matches, OGC Nice, previously well-placed for third place, has tumbled down in the standings. This Sunday against Troyes, victory was imperative to stay in the race for Europe.
Right from the start of the match, the Niçois positioned themselves high up the field and attempted to exploit depth. Galtier’s men quickly settled in the Troyes camp, attempting to break the lines through passes from Boudaoui and Rosario. Several attempts followed, but it was Gouiri in the 10th minute who initiated the first serious threat on Moulin’s goal.
In their relentless efforts to break the lines with complex passes, the azure side made numerous errors. Troyes tried to capitalize on these mistakes by moving quickly forward relying on the speed of their wing-backs. Nevertheless, Nice regrouped effectively and managed to control Troyes’ counters.
After half an hour of play, ESTAC started to gain slightly more possession and succeeded in recovering the ball high up the pitch. They consistently delivered good crosses into the box, but the rare shots on target were confidently caught by Benitez.
Just before halftime, the Aiglons had another chance to open the score, but once again they lacked precision in the final move.
At halftime, the Gym returned to the locker room feeling that they could have been ahead. Their inability to finish in front of the goal and deliver accurate passes to set up their attackers in good positions was evident. At the end of these first 45 minutes, the Aiglons struggled against the tenacity and explosiveness of the Trojan team.
The Trojans pushed higher in the second half, seemingly gaining confidence from the end of the first half. The Niçois approached the Troyes area multiple times, but, as in the first half, there was no accuracy in the finishing or in the final pass.
Troyes managed their counters well, but Nice preserved the draw. However, Dante came close to conceding a penalty, but the referee was unmoved.
After the hour mark, the Aiglons had possession of the ball but rarely managed to hit the target. The numerous crosses from the sides were far too imprecise, and Jessy Moulin was never troubled.
It was the substitutes from Nice who provided a new breath of life to the game. First, Evan Guessand almost opened the scoring, but Moulin performed a reflex save with his chest. A few minutes after coming on, it was Daniliuc who shot following a corner, and the ball narrowly missed the post. The Austrian appeared again just before the end of regulation time, and on a center, the ball was handled, but the referee said nothing. The Niçois pushed harder in the final moments, and it was the substitutes again who made the difference. Following a free-kick by Kluivert, Thuram (who came on at the hour mark for Boudaoui) took the ball in the box and passed to Guessand (substituted for Dolberg) who perfectly returned it to him. The former ASM player controlled subtly and triggered a shot, the ball nestled into the bottom right corner of Moulin’s net! 1-0 for the Gym two minutes before the end of the match!
The victory seemed sealed for OGC Nice, but in their last possession, Troyes settled in the azure territory. Palmer-Brown crossed from the right side, and Tardieu headed, but Benitez made a great save. What a scare for the Gym.
With this victory against Troyes, Nice remains in the race for European places. These three points were snatched thanks to Thuram’s goal. However, the Gym delivered a very average performance, and a draw would not have been undeserved. Offensively, Nice posed very little threat to the Trojans. Only three shots were on target in this match. The game in Bordeaux, the worst defense in Ligue 1 of the 21st century, on May 1 might be an opportunity to regain attacking sensations. Until then, OGC Nice is back up to fifth place in the standings.
