Metz missed the chance to earn a crucial victory as 10-man Nice held on for a goalless draw in Ligue 1.
Surprisingly it was the bottom club who dominated possession for long spells of the first half, but a sluggish start from Nice would go unpunished as chances were few and far between.
© Getty Images
Heavy snow made life difficult for both sides, and only speculative strikes threatened to break the deadlock before the break, with Yeni N'Gbakoto testing Nice goalkeeper Mouez Hassan from 30 yards.
The conditions put the match under threat at the interval as ground staff were forced to clear snow off the pitch and repaint the lines.
It was Metz who looked the sharper of the two sides after a delayed restart, but they missed a great opportunity to go ahead when Jose Luis Palomino headed wide from N'Gbakoto's corner.
As the battle for superiority continued, Metz were handed the advantage when Neal Maupay was shown a straight red card for pushing his head into Sylvain Marchal, whose reaction forced Nice to play the remaining 17 minutes with 10 men.
Nice retreated to defend the point, and were left breathing a sigh of relief when substitute Juan Manuel Falcon somehow fired over from eight yards.
Metz continued to push for a winner in the closing stages, but Nice held on to deal their opponents a blow in their hopes of avoiding relegation.
Callum Mulvihill
