Nice – Saint-Etienne

Nice lost in the French Cup final. Will this affect their game against Saint-Etienne?

On Matchday 36 of the French championship, Nice will play Saint-Etienne on home soil. The upcoming game is very important for both teams. Nice lost the French Cup final to Nantes at the weekend (0-1) and have a chance of qualifying for the European competitions only through Ligue 1, where they are not doing very well so far. The Eagles are in sixth place, but only five points behind eighth-placed Lyon. One win could lift Nice to fourth place at once. And the gap from second place, which gives a ticket to the Champions League, is eight points, and from third place - five. So the fight is not over for Nice. Saint-Etienne are in the qualifying zone, so they need to win. The gap from the safe zone is just three points. And the gap from the relegation zone is the same three points. Both teams will have no problem with motivation. Saint-Etienne, who have had more time to prepare, could be a little fresher. But they are not in the best shape overall. In their last two matches, the Greens lost to Monaco (1-4) and Rennes (0-2). Before that, they drew 2-2 with Bordeaux and 2-1 with Brest. St Etienne have a good selection of players in attack, but a very weak defence. Especially in away games. Over the last three away games, Saint-Etienne have scored four goals but conceded ten. In five away games in a row, the Greens cannot win. In total, they have three away wins, four draws and ten defeats. Nice have nine wins at home, with four draws and four defeats. At the same time, the Eagles have won seven of their last eight matches at home in Ligue 1. In the first leg, Nice beat St Etienne 3-0 on the road. The Eagles' attacking leaders Guiry and Delors each scored a goal. The latter had 13 goals in Ligue 1, while Gouiri had ten. Like Saint-Etienne's top scorer Hazri. Nice have preferred to play more closed football of late, but Saint-Etienne are fairly open and up against the wall. So is Nice themselves. So we can expect a more combative game.