The team from Nice did not manage to win their third preparatory match against Toulouse (1-2) yesterday at the Charles Ehrmann stadium during their first appearance in front of their home crowd.
Relying on a solid defense led by the U19 European champion Issa Diop, Téfécé relied on a striking duo of Ben Yedder and Braithwaite that was very difficult to manage, causing much trouble for the Nice defense in the first half, managing to stand out on several occasions.
The “Aiglons” still managed to wake up at the start of the second half, but it was not enough to hope for a win.
After the first goal by the opponent’s number 6, Oscar Trejo, it was Alexy Bosetti, who had come in a few minutes earlier, who found the back of the net and scored the equalizing goal.
Unfortunately, less than a minute later, Toulouse’s Martin Braithwaite gave the victory to his team.
According to the coach, Lucien Favre, it was the “lack of automatism” and “defensive errors” that did not allow OGC Nice to win this match.
The new squad “which is not the same as last year” and has only played three matches “lacks defensive and offensive cohesion,” explained the Nice coach, “it needs to be rebuilt and that will take a little time,” he continued.
The match was also very physical, with the opposing team putting in a lot of commitment. Many fouls occurred during the match. The Gym even had to substitute their left-back, Dalbert Chagas Estevao, due to a harsh hit he received to the head.
Despite this defeat, there are positives to be found. “Compared to previous matches, there were certain phases where the team played very well.”
Also, the very nice saves by Yoan Cardinale and the magnificent offensive breakthroughs by the young Vincent Marcel, from the youth academy, give hope for the coming season.
The pace of preparation will now accelerate, as the “Aiglons” will be in Naples on Monday evening to challenge Napoli, the second in the last Serie A.
Jeremy Berardi
Photo credit and more info at www.ogcnice.com
