OGC Nice hosts Angers tonight for the 21st day of Ligue 1. A seemingly ordinary match that actually pits the 2nd against the 4th in the league, making it a real showdown.
For Nice, it’s a great opportunity to come within a point of the podium. With favorites (Lyon or Marseille in particular) lagging behind their expected pace, European places are still within reach. But to secure them by the end of the season, they shouldn’t wait any longer to settle in.
While Angers seems destined for a less glorious second half of the season with the departures of Butelle or Camara, Nice has lost nothing on paper. The return of Alassane Plea in about three weeks should even bring a certain offensive freshness.
In the meantime, to stay in the limelight, winning is essential. Especially at home. It’s at home that the real challenge of the second half of OGC Nice’s season lies. With 13 points out of a possible 27, the record at Allianz is average and doesn’t meet the ambitions of the red and black.
For the eaglets, SCO presents a real trap. A compact, physically strong team ready to strike on the counterattack. It is also with these characteristics that Guingamp, in much lesser form than Angers, had already come to win in Nice at the start of the season.
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