The last preparatory match of the young Nice team – a 3-1 victory over Lens – has reassured the staff and the fans of Nice about the form of the red and black squad as well as the effectiveness of an attack that seems determined to make itself known in the upcoming national season.
Bellion, Moussilou, and Camara managed to shake the northern nets three times, while the Nice goalkeeping was handled by Lloris in the first half and then replaced by Grégorini in the second half. With definite confidence, Antonetti’s protégés will start the first day of Ligue 1 against a Le Mans team that wants to deliver a victory to its audience for the first of the 38 acts of the 2006/2007 season. The clash between the two teams turned in favor of Le Mans, which won last year (26th day: 2-0) and drew during the 2003-2004 season (3rd day: 1-1).
We will have to wait until Saturday, August 12, to see the Nice players on the Ray stadium grass, facing the canaries of FC Nantes, who are determined not to be plucked in front of eaglets who, “figuratively speaking” at least, possess convincing arguments. The Nice team emerges as the brilliant winners of the history between the two clubs with 11 wins, 13 draws, and only 6 defeats, scoring a total of 44 goals to 30 conceded.
Following are equally perilous encounters with a trip to Toulouse (20/08), hosting the Lyon giant (26/08), a big gala match against Bordeaux (09/09), and another trip to Troyes (16/09), hoping to have garnered enough points before hosting the newly-promoted Valenciennes on the Côte d’Azur, on September 23.
Fourteen departures for six arrivals might seem a lot for the Nice squad, but regarding departures, they are mainly players who participated less in last season’s games, while among the arrivals, Cédric Kanté and Matt Moussilou carry the hopes of a red and black house hoping to perform just as well as last season. The rest is a bonus that everyone secretly dreams of, from Maurice Cohen to Gilbert Stellardo, Frédéric Antonetti, and thousands of fans who are patiently waiting for the initial whistle of a season that could smell of Europe with a little bit of luck from the great teams.
The cleats are already well set in the starting blocks, and the new version of OGC Nice really looks impressive according to national observers who, unusually enough to mention, write or comment positively on the qualities and feats of a club from Nice often criticized or disparaged. What remains now is to prove, on the hexagonal green fields, the good disposition of this group which exudes good humor and solidity, much like its serene and confident staff, values tested multiple times last season.
There remains a small shadow over the proceedings with the decision regarding the grand stadium of Nice that will be debated and judged tomorrow in an administrative court that might well lack the “capacity” to host an audience curious about the outcomes given to the construction project of the grand stadium on the Var plain.
In short, as a famous French comedian would say, “I am well, all is well.” It has been quite some time, quite a long time indeed that the surroundings and atmosphere of the Azurean club weren’t as clear a blue and like at the beginning of every season, hopes will all be laid, like every Saturday, on the green felt, hoping to win big by playing the Nice David against a Lyon Goliath.
