Nice have a chance to hand their arch-rivals Monaco their first defeat in Ligue 1 this year when they travel to Stade Louis II to face them on Sunday in the final Derby de la Cote d'Azur this season.
Under caretaker boss Didier Digard, Les Aiglons are unbeaten in seven consecutive domestic affairs, drawing Reims 0-0 last weekend, while Les Monegasques have points in nine straight league fixtures after edging Brest 2-1 last Sunday.
Match preview
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The World Cup break seemed to rejuvenate the team from the Principality, who have been the model of consistency in 2023, winning four consecutive domestic encounters.
Their hopes of Europa League glory ended on Thursday, when Bayer Leverkusen eliminated them in the knockout round playoffs in a tie that was nodded at five after two legs, with the Germans winning 5-3 on penalties.
Philippe Clement and his side can now focus all of their attention on Ligue 1, where Monaco have put themselves back in contention for an automatic Champions League berth, currently trailing Marseille for second by a mere two points.
They come into this weekend's action unbeaten in their last seven domestic encounters versus Nice at Stade Louis II, winning this exact fixture last season 1-0.
Their victory over Brest a week ago gave them 50 points after 24 league fixtures, making it the fifth time in the 21st century that Les Monegasques had reached that milestone, with Paris Saint-Germain the only other side in the French top flight to achieve that feat more often over that stretch (11).
Monaco have not surrendered the opening goal all year in this competition, while 10 of their last 14 goals scored at home in Ligue 1 have come in the first half.
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Over in the French Riviera, Nice have been steadily climbing up the league table thanks to their stingy defensive play, conceding just once in their last six domestic encounters.
So far this year, Le Gym have posted five clean sheets in this competition, the second-most among sides in the big-five European leagues behind Nantes and Barcelona (six).
All of the goals they have conceded this year have come on the road, with the previous one occurring earlier this month when Ruslan Malinovskyi put Marseille on the board, though Nice still walked away with a 3-1 triumph.
Nice have been unable to keep Monaco off the scoresheet in the Principality since September 2014, when they won 1-0, while Les Monegasques are the only Ligue 1 opponent that Les Aiglons have not defeated since the start of the 2020-21 campaign.
They come into this encounter just five points behind Rennes for a place in the Europa Conference League next season, while only three points separate Nice in eighth from Lille in sixth.
A win or draw this weekend would extend their unbeaten run in this competition to eight games, the longest for them in the top flight since 2017-18 (also eight games).
Team News
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Vanderson and Guillermo Maripan might each still be a week away from returning to the Monaco lineup due to knee injuries, Gelson Martins and Ruben Aguilar could be recovered from their thigh issues and Kevin Volland came on as a substitute on Thursday after previously sustaining an ankle strain.
Goals from Wissam Ben Yedder and Breel Embolo helped Les Monegasques force extra time and penalties in their second-leg tie versus Leverkusen, but Eliot Matazo was the only player to miss from the spot, sending his side to defeat.
Aleksandr Golovin has scored in back-to-back domestic contests as he and Myron Boadu each found the back of the net versus Brest last weekend, while the Russian midfielder was the only one to score the last time they hosted Nice a season ago, in a game where Alexander Nubel made seven saves for the clean sheet.
Nice will be missing a few players for the rest of the month, including Marcin Bulka, who has a sore shoulder, Youcef Atal is dealing with a pulled hamstring, Nicolas Pepe continues to recover from a knee issue and Joe Bryan remains out with a calf injury.
Kasper Schmeichel collected his eighth clean sheet of the season last weekend, stopping a penalty from the joint-top goalscorer in Ligue 1 Folarin Balogun in their draw at home to Reims.
Billal Brahimi has three goals in his last three domestic encounters, notching a brace in their previous road game when they defeated Marseille, while their leading scorer Gaetan Laborde has found the back of the net in the last two away contests for Nice in this competition.
Monaco possible starting lineup:
Nubel; Matsima, Disasi, Sarr, Henrique; Diatta, Fofana, Magassa, Golovin; Ben Yedder, Embolo
Nice possible starting lineup:
Schmeichel; Lotomba, Dante, Todibo, Bard; Rosario, Boudaoui, Ramsey; Diop, Moffi, Laborde
We say: Monaco 1-1 Nice
The Monaco attack should prove to be a stiff test for the Nice backline on Sunday, but Les Aiglons have the good fortune of playing a side that might be a little tired and emotionally drained this weekend, and given the fine form each side are in domestically, a stalemate seems like a distinct possibility.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
Joel Lefevre
