This Saturday, the Gym travels to ASSE’s field as part of the 24th day of Ligue 1. In great form in recent weeks, the Eagles want to extend their impressive series. All the pre-match info can be discovered here.
The OGC Nice wants to continue its incredible pace! The Eagles are on a five-match undefeated streak in Ligue 1 (four wins and one draw). Franck Haise’s men are clinging to their third place and want to maintain this high pace. Last weekend, Gaëtan Laborde’s teammates did the job against Montpellier (2-0), the bottom of L1. In the championship, the Niçois have been unbeaten since mid-January, except for a loss on the field of LOSC (1-2).
Thanks to this new success, the Gym has regained a two-point lead over fourth place. The Azurean players can harbor high ambitions for this season’s end. Baptiste Santamaria’s teammates still have 11 matches to play by the end of the 2024/25 season. And the Niçois are still in the running for a possible qualification in the Champions League, especially since the gap with the second, OM, has narrowed. There are only three points between the two southern rival clubs.
Franck Haise suspended
Ironically, it is not a player from the squad who will serve a suspension match in this encounter but the Azurean coach himself. Franck Haise has been handed a three-match suspension for “offensive” remarks towards the referee at the end of the match during the elimination from the French Cup against Saint-Brieuc. Therefore, the Nice tactician will be in the stands on Saturday at Geoffroy-Guichard.
This will also be the case for the next two encounters, against OL, and then Auxerre. His assistant, Lilian Nalis, will take his place on the red and black bench. Regarding the squad, only the long-term absentees, Morgan Sanson and Terem Moffi, will not be available. But both Eagles are gradually getting closer to returning to competition.
On the other side, AS Saint-Étienne currently holds the playoff spot. In the heat of the relegation battle, the Greens are three points behind Stade de Reims, the first team outside the relegation zone. In the first leg, Gautier Larsonneur’s teammates suffered a heavy defeat at Allianz Riviera (8-0). Eirik Horneland’s players are coming off an animated 3-3 draw against Angers last week.
Probable line-ups:
ASSE: Larsonneur (C) – Macon, Batubinsika, Nade, Petrot – Bouchouari, Ekwah, Tardieu – Cardona, Stassin, Davitashvili
Nice: Bulka – Bombito, Ndayishimiye, Dante (C) – Clauss, Santamaria, Boudaoui, Bard – Guessand, Laborde, Cho