Les Aiglons missed their match and despite the high level of play, they lost three points (2-1). The second place is now definitively out of reach.
About ten clear chances. Two posts. Control over the game and the keys to the match in their feet. To say that the Niçois played without inhibition at their Marseilles neighbor during the first half would be an understatement, as the earlier mentioned picture is enough to confirm it. But dominating isn’t winning, as the saying goes, and Lucien Favre’s men found themselves trailing at halftime against the run of play, before facing local pressure during a second half that left a bitter taste.
A week after the victory against Paris, the same 11 started the derby with enthusiasm. Positioned in a well-drilled 4-2-3-1, Dante’s teammates applied themselves to start from deep, taking advantage of their opponent’s disordered pressing to stretch them across the field. To find spaces in the gaps, execute their ideas, and therefore, attack.
Right from the start, Balotelli recovered a ball and passed to Belhanda, who launched Ricardo. After cutting inside on his left foot to find the gap last week, the Portuguese international this time opted for his right, struck powerfully but hit Pelé’s post (3′). Seri swiveled and shot over (9′). Dalbert, after a one-two with Eysseric, shot with his left and found the post (13′). Balotelli hit the “albatross” gloves (19′)… But no breakthrough was found. The Phocaeans, constantly on a tightrope when defending, held firm at first before moving higher to secure themselves. Yet, they showed themselves to be dangerously threatening when attacking in a very vertical manner, which also fairly sums up their season. Yoan Cardinale therefore pulled off a superb horizontal save to keep his team in the match, as Sanson had appeared alone in front of him following a lost Niçois ball (15′).
This same Cardi’ deftly deflected Gomis’s ball (17′), before the French international smashed a corner from Payet at the near post to open the scoring (21′).
Without pressure – and sometimes even too relaxed –, Les Aiglons did not bow under the Provençal hammer blow. Paul Baysse believed he had equalized by converting a Seri free kick, but was rightly flagged offside (24′). Rod Fanni nearly scored an own goal by haphazardly clearing a red and black cross (25′). Belhanda lobbed Pelé but Rolando cleared before it crossed the line (30′). Dalbert outplayed Cabella to serve Ricardo in the back, whose side-footed shot was thwarted by the white goalkeeper… In short, the Niçois did not surrender. Their last line of defense kept the score intact by stretching out for a Cabella strike.
Not rewarded in the 1st half, the Côte d’Azur team made up for lost ground at the start of the second period. They set the record straight on their first attack. In the role of the watchmaker, a focused and opportunistic Super Mario. On a distant free kick from Seri, cap’tain Polo battled to lay the ball back into the center, and the top scorer of Gym 2016/2017 coolly finished off the job (50′).
Cardinale made another crucial save just after the equalizer, but paradoxically, the Aiglons lost their footing for a significant quarter of an hour. Their passes became less assured, they regained ground, and eventually cracked by shooting themselves in the foot in the 66th minute. Marseille intercepted a new ball very high up, Lopez served Evra, and the ex-Nice player gave his team the lead by diving in with his head at the second post.
Nice found it difficult to take the hit. But once the pain subsided, Nice tried to come back. Coach Favre adjusted his system by throwing in all his offensive options. Donis replaced Ricardo, Le Bihan succeeded Koziello, Srarfi took Eysseric’s place: Belhanda dropped back one line, and the Azuréens ended in a 4-4-2. Both Balotelli and Donis created chances but couldn’t turn them into points. OM, far from being pinned back, decided they should attack to win, and also created some good opportunities, but the score remained unchanged.
Heroic all season, the Niçois fell for the third time in the championship. They now know they will finish the campaign with a bronze medal. Something to be certainly proud of…
The stat: 14
It had been 14 years since Patrice Evra last scored in Ligue 1. He played at the time for Monaco. The irony is, the Marseillais was trained… at Nice.
Lucien Favre’s reaction
“We could feel there’s a slight relaxation. We know that the goals are achieved, that it’s impossible to reach others. But that’s no excuse. We weren’t compact enough, not good enough in ball recovery. It opens up too much space for others and we’re a bit out of sync. There were many chances on both sides, but it wasn’t of a high level. There was too much space. They left some, but we exploited them poorly, without enough runs in depth. We had easy ball losses, trying to play too complicated. It happens…”
Vincent Koziello’s reaction
“We’re very disappointed tonight because I think we don’t deserve to lose here, especially with our opportunities in the 1st half, where we hit the post twice and they scored from a corner that wasn’t. At halftime, 1-0 for them, it was really a heavy price. But well, we had the merit of coming back to score, and then they scored in their strong period. It’s a strange match. We hope to bounce back quickly, even though we need to put things in perspective.”
