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Saturday sees Lyon face-off with Nice at the Groupama Stadium in a major Ligue 1 game.
Lyon are currently in eighth, eight points behind Nice who are pushing for a Champions League qualifying spot in third.
Can Lyon knock their visitors down a peg this weekend, or will Nice pick up a valuable three points?
Lyon vs Nice Head-to-Head
By their own high standards, Lyon have had a disappointing 2021-22 campaign thus far, winning just nine of their first 23 matches.
Peter Bosz’s side have never hit a real skid this season, but they’ve struggled for consistency throughout, so it’s no surprise to see them down in eighth place.
Their best run probably came from early December until last weekend, as they put together an unbeaten run of seven matches – including winning three in a row – before Monaco brought them back down with a 2-0 win.
Nice, meanwhile, have largely impressed under last season’s title-winning boss Christophe Galtier, and are currently just one point off second place in the table.
However, they did see a run of five straight wins snapped last weekend at the hands of struggling Clermont, a result that showed that Nice can still be vulnerable at times.
In general, though, even when they’ve been off form, Nice have been solid. In fact, with 19 goals conceded, they have the league’s joint-meanest defense alongside table-toppers Paris St. Germain.
Interestingly, the last two games between these sides have seen Nice come out on top by the same score – 3-2.
Lyon form guide: D-W-W-W-L
Nice form guide: W-W-W-L-W
Lyon vs Nice Team News
Lyon
Lyon have a number of injuries to contend with leading into this game, although striker Karl Toko Ekambi will be back after playing in the AFCON.
Injured: Rayan Cherki, Damien Da Silva, Tino Kadewere, Houssem Aouar
Doubtful: Jason Denayer, Lenny Pintor, Jeff Reine-Adelaide
Suspended: None
Nice
Goalkeeper Walter Benitez is out with COVID-19, while Jordan Amavi will miss out with a knee injury.
Injured: Jordan Amavi
Doubtful: None
Suspended: None
Unavailable: Walter Benitez
Lyon vs Nice Predicted XI
Lyon predicted XI (3-4-2-1): Anthony Lopes, Leo Dubois, Jerome Boateng, Castello Lukeba, Romain Faivre, Maxence Caqueret, Tanguy Ndombele, Henrique, Lucas Paqueta, Emerson Palmieri, Moussa Dembele
Nice predicted XI (4-4-2): Marcin Bulka, Youcef Atal, Flavius Daniliuc, Dante, Melvin Bard, Hichem Boudaoui, Morgan Schneiderlin, Khephren Thuram, Justin Kluivert, Andy Delort, Amine Gouiri
Lyon vs Nice Prediction
This match should be a tight one as these sides are evenly matched, but Lyon have so many players out right now it might be hard for them to find their best form.
Nice, meanwhile, are coming off a 4-1 Coupe de France win over Marseille and should be full of confidence leading into this game.
Therefore, an away win is the prediction.
Prediction: Lyon 1-2 Nice
