Soccer France Ligue 1 Prediction

Nice vs Lyon - Match Preview

⚽ 3 June 2023 - 19:00 GMT +0

Nice has endured a frustrating season. After finishing fifth in 2021/22, the departures of manager Christophe Galtier and creator-in-chief Amine Gouiri were tough pills to swallow. Nice brought in Gaëtan Laborde along with the likes of Aaron Ramsey, Ross Barkley and Nicolas Pépé, but new boss Lucien Favre initially struggled to achieve results. Things picked up either side of the FIFA World Cup, but Favre was sacked after the Coupe de France exit to third-tier Le Puy in January, with Digard Digard taking over as caretaker in his first-ever top-flight managerial role as the Alpes-Maritimes outfit sat 11th.

There was an instant upturn for the 36-year-old as Nice recorded statement wins at Lens, Marseille and Monaco to mount a top-five push. Since then, however, only three victories have followed in 12 league matches, leaving the team ninth, while the UEFA Europa Conference League (UECL) semi-final loss to Basel came after the French side twice squandered the lead in the tie. It’s set to be another big summer in the transfer market, with Khéphren Thuram and Jean-Clair Todibo reportedly attracting big interest and Digard’s future uncertain. Ramsey, Barkley and Pépé could also leave, making another year of Allianz Riviera upheaval inevitable.

Lyon has also found things challenging at times this term, but looks much more dangerous under Laurent Blanc, who was appointed in October following Peter Bosz’s sacking. After seven victories from their previous nine league games, which saw a total of 33 goals scored, Les Gones could even come fifth and make the UECL if they win on Saturday and both Rennes and Monaco lose to bottom-half duo Brest and Toulouse respectively.

Alexandre Lacazette has been central to Lyon’s revival, and in his first season back at his boyhood team, sits just one goal behind Kylian Mbappé in the race for Ligue 1’s Golden Boot, having netted seven times in his last four matches. The vultures are circling, however. Malo Gusto is already off to Chelsea, while Sinaly Diomandé, Rayan Cherki and Bradley Barcola are all said to be in demand, leaving new club president John Textor with a tough job to keep hold of several key assets this summer.

📋 Players to watch: Nice’s on-loan striker Terem Moffi may have not yet hit the form that he showed for his parent club Lorient earlier this season, but Lyon should be wary of the Nigerian, who has scored in his last two meetings with them. Also showing a distinct liking for the opposition, Lacazette has eight career goals against Nice and comes into this game after scoring 13 goals in the last 11 rounds, meaning he’ll still be hopeful of overhauling Mbappé at the top of the scoring charts.

⚡ Hot streak: Nice haven’t kept a clean sheet in their eight previous meetings with Lyon.