Following Nantes’ defeat last night, Nice has the opportunity to snatch fifth place from the Canaries if they win. However, they must be wary of the threat posed by Saint-Étienne.
Unbeaten in the last 7 matches (5 wins, 2 draws), the Aiglons will be missing several key players. In addition to the already announced absences of Christophe Jallet, Maxime Le Marchand, and Arnaud Souquet, the latest to be sidelined are Marlon (thigh muscle injury) and Adrien Tameze (hip pain).
To cope with these numerous absences, the Nice coach has called upon left-footers Romain Perraud (20 years old) and Racine Coly (22 years old), and has summoned for the first time the young Andy Pelmard. The U18 international defender, who has been regularly featured in the N2 this season, is joined by Nampalys Mendy and Yoan Cardinale, who were absent at Monaco last Tuesday.
In 14th place at the dawn of this 22nd matchday, Saint-Étienne suffered a defeat at the bottom-placed Metz after starting the year with 2 victories (2-0 against Nîmes in the Cup, and the same score against Toulouse in Ligue 1). Les Verts welcome back Stéphane Ruffier from suspension and travel for the first time with their latest signing, Paul-Georges Ntep. However, Hernani is suspended, and Vincent Pajot is unfit to play.
THE NICE SQUAD
Goalkeepers: Benitez, Cardinale
Defenders: Sarr, Burner, Dante, Coly, Pelmard, Perraud
Midfielders: Mendy, Cyprien, Seri, Makengo, Lees-Melou, Marcel
Forwards: Balotelli, Pléa, Saint-Maximin, Srarfi, Ganago
THE SAINT-ÉTIENNE SQUAD
Goalkeepers: Ruffier, Moulin, Guendouz
Defenders: Lacroix, Silva, Janko, Perrin, Pierre-Gabriel
Midfielders: M’Vila, Diousse, Cabella, Maïga, Selnaes
Forwards: Bamba, Ntep, Hamouma, Monnet-Paquet, Soderlund, Beric, Goncalves
THE REFEREE
For the third time this season, after the defeat against Lyon (0-5) and the draw at Lille (1-1), Franck Schneider will officiate a match for Nice. On the sidelines, Djemel Zitouni and Nicolas Henninot have been appointed as assistants.
