This Friday, OGC Nice travels to the field of Toulouse Football Club for a final match before the 15-day international break. It’s an opportunity for the Aiglons to break into the top 10.
Punished 3-0 by Paris-Saint-Germain on Saturday at the Allianz Riviera, the Nices have a chance to regain the taste of victory against a tough opponent. “Toulouse is a solid team. Especially at home, they are hard to play against. They are aggressive, physically tough, and they run a lot. We will need to be rigorous on the field,” explains Pierre Lees-Melou.
A tough opponent that recently had a 1-1 draw at Rennes (while down a man) and a home defeat against Saint-Etienne, 3-2. “We need to be well-organized tactically, play our game, play our football to challenge the Toulouse team. We will use the match at Nantes (a 2-1 victory) to apply the same ingredients to bring back a win,” says coach Patrick Vieira.
A decimated midfield
For this trip to the Southwest, the Azurean coach will be without Wylan Cyprien (suspended due to his red card received Saturday against PSG), Danilo (injured for several weeks and in recovery), and Jean-Victor Makengo, who came off injured Saturday and will be out for over a month. Patrick Vieira is expected to maintain the Tameze-Lees Melou pair in the midfield and integrate Remi Walter into the center. “It’s a possibility. Remi is training well,” he adds.
On the bench at the start of the match Saturday against the Parisians, Mario Balotelli should be starting at the forefront of the Nice attack. Despite his rather unsuccessful entrance in the second half, the Italian is ready to find the back of the net again. “He is ready to start. He is working hard, making efforts to regain his form from last year. We’re counting on him, I’m counting on him,” Coach Vieira hints.
Anchored at the 13th place in the standings, OGC Nice has the chance to surpass their opponent (7th place, two points ahead). A match that can start a series just before a 15-day break (international break) or sink the Gym further down the standings. A match with stakes.
Pierre Ferrand
