Lens – Nice

Lance should not experience problems with the crisis in Nice.

In the match of the 16th round of the French championship, Lens will play at home against Nice. The 'Blood and Gold' team recently seized the lead for the first time in many years and is not planning to let it go. Although PSG, who played their match of this round earlier, has taken the lead. Lens needs to win to reclaim the top spot in the standings and to pull away from the chasing pair – Marseille and Lille are five points behind Lens, and only two participants remain in the title race. Lens is currently in great form, having won eight out of their last nine matches. The only setback was unexpectedly against Metz (0:2). After that, they achieved five consecutive victories: against Lorient (3:0), Monaco (4:1), Strasbourg (1:0), Angers (2:1), and Nantes (2:1). Notably, the last two were secured away under difficult conditions. The team is clearly toughening up and learning to claw points in non-obvious situations. On the other hand, Nice is on a downward trajectory and has lost eight consecutive matches across all tournaments. During the week, they lost to Braga (0:1) in the Europa League, prematurely exiting the tournament where they sit at the bottom. Previously, in the French championship, Nice lost to Angers (0:1) and Lorient (1:3). The 'Eagles' are mentally exhausted and have many absences in their squad. They appear to be good prey for Lens, but they may unexpectedly offer resistance. Further decline could lead to significant troubles with a squad that, on paper, is capable of competing for places in European cups. Right now, Nice is in 12th place, having the same points as Lorient, one point ahead of Paris, and two points ahead of Le Havre. They are also trailing Brest by the same margin.