Preview: Nice vs. Saint-Etienne - prediction, team news, lineups

Nice will be aiming to record back-to-back victories in Ligue 1 for the first time since October when they welcome Saint-Etienne to the Allianz Riviera for Sunday's battle.

Adrian Ursea's men enjoyed a 1-0 victory over Lens last weekend, while a ravaged Saint-Etienne team were simply swept aside by bitter rivals Lyon.

Match preview

Any faint whispers of relegation worry for Nice became much quieter after they secured an unexpected 1-0 win on Lens' turf last Saturday, with Youcef Atal's well-taken goal separating the two sides at the Stade Bollaert-Delelis.

Les Aiglons ended a five-game winless streak with their first triumph of 2021 - and only Ursea's second since taking over from Patrick Vieira - with that result propelling Nice up to 12th in the rankings after Brest and Strasbourg both failed to win in gameweek 21.

Mid-table obscurity now appears to be the best result that Nice can hope for as the spring approaches, with a truly abysmal run of form in Vieira's final days quashing any hopes of a second consecutive season in Europe for Les Aiglons, who are now aiming to end an equally dismal spell on their own patch.

Nice's two recent victories over Nimes and Lens have both come on the road, and the hosts have failed to win in their last seven league matches on home soil - losing five of them - since a 2-1 victory over Nantes on October 3.

Having taken just eight points from their domestic encounters at the Allianz Riviera, where they are also yet to keep a clean sheet this term, only relegation-threatened Dijon and Nimes have fared worse on their own turf so far.

However, Nice have been handed a prime opportunity to claim all three points on home soil against a Saint-Etienne side still reeling from the effects of their COVID-19 catastrophe.

Claude Puel's men hosted Lyon in the 122nd Derby du Rhone last Sunday, but the coronavirus-hit Verts simply capitulated against the title-chasers as they succumbed to a 5-0 defeat on the night, with Marcelo and Tino Kadewere both netting braces, while an own goal from Denis Bouanga rubbed salt in the wounds.

Puel's charges are now without a win in six since beating Bordeaux on December 16 - with that rare victory representing the only time that Saint-Etienne have triumphed in their last 18 matches as the threat of relegation begins to loom.

Four points separate Les Verts from the bottom three as things stand, but 16th-placed Saint-Etienne cannot rise any higher with a win this weekend and could be leapfrogged by Nantes if they can pull off an improbable win over Monaco.

Nice eased to a 3-1 win on Saint-Etienne's turf when the sides met back in October, and Les Verts have not tasted success on their opponents' ground since the 2013-14 season.

Nice Ligue 1 form: LDLDLW

Saint-Etienne Ligue 1 form: DDDLLL

Team News

Match-winner Atal was forced off just two minutes after finding the back of the net against Lens - the right-back appeared to injure his hamstring while celebrating and will reportedly now be out for three weeks.

Jordan Lotomba is therefore set for a swift recall to the starting lineup, while Khephren Thuram will be eyeing a return to the midfield, but Ursea will be reluctant to disrupt the harmony after last weekend's win.

Rony Lopes, Danilo Barbosa and Morgan Schneiderlin are not expected to play a part as they battle their way back from various injuries.

Saint-Etienne are in far better shape now that several of their first-teamers have recovered from COVID-19 infection, but the likes of Mathieu Debuchy, Panagiotis Retsos, Gabriel Silva and Kevin Monnet-Paquet did not play against Lyon and remain doubts here.

Harold Moukoudi's potential absence means that Saidou Sow is likely to deputise in defence, while Bouanga will likely have the chance to put things right after Sunday's own goal with a start on the left-hand side.

Further changes from the derby drubbing could see Arnaud Nordin, Adil Aouchiche and Zaydou Youssouf all reprise their regular roles in the first XI.

Nice possible starting lineup: Benitez; Saliba, Daniliuc, Bambu; Thuram; Lotomba, Boudaoui, Reine-Adelaide, Kamara; Dolberg, Gouiri

Saint-Etienne possible starting lineup: Moulin; Sissoko, Sow, Kolodziejczak, Trauco; Neyou, Youssouf; Nordin, Aouchiche, Bouanga; Hamouma

We say: Nice 2-1 Saint-Etienne

If Saint-Etienne are blessed with a near fully-fit contingent for this showdown, a shock victory is certainly not out of the question against an underwhelming Nice outfit. However, the visitors' confidence would have taken a massive hit against Lyon - even with so many youngsters being forced into first-team action - and we are backing Nice to end their wretched run on home soil with a narrow win on Sunday.

Top betting tip

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