13 August 2021, 22:04 | 28 August 2021, 15:29
French Ligue 1 fixture, Lille OSC vs. OGC Nice kicks off at 16:00 (GMT+1) on Saturday, August 14 at the Stade Pierre-Mauroy.
Preview Lille Ligue 1, Aug 14, 2021
Preview Ligue 1 champions, Lille were only good enough for a point on the road in the six-goal thriller against F.C. Metz despite having the numerical advantage after Boubakar Kouyate (56’ R.) was given the marching orders minutes after the break. Midway into the first half, Sven Botman (23’) handed Lille the lead before Fabien Centonze (31’) levelled the score-line for the home side. Ten minutes later, Matthieu Udol (41’) gave Metz the lead. Lille sunk into a two-goal deficit after Fabien Centonze (52’) returned for the brace with Thomas Delaine notching his second assist for the 25-year-old right-back. But a dramatic twist in the shape of a red card to Kouyate of Metz handed the champions a lift. A late push from LOSC saw Ikone (81’) cut the deficit down to a goal before an own goal from Alexandre Oukidja (90'+7 O.G) salvaged a point for Lille in stoppage time. 3-3! It finished. After starting off with a draw in his first Ligue 1 game in charge for Lille, Jocelyn Gourvennec would be looking to pick up his first win for the champions on Saturday. In the game against Metz, he adopted a conventional 4—4—2 formation which saw Burak Yilmaz and Jonathan David form a striking partnership up-front. A similar formation is expected from the French champions on Match Day 2. Center-back, Tiago Djalo remains suspended and will play no part in this fixture after an altercation that led to physical contact with team-mate, Xeka in a pre-season club-friendly match against KV Kortrijk.
Preview Nice Ligue 1, Aug 14, 2021
Preview OGC Nice return after a goalless draw on Match Day 1 when they faced Stade de Reims. After guiding Lille to their first Ligue 1 title in 10 years, – the 4th in the club’s history, coach, Christophe Galtier would be facing his former employers on Match Day 2. He would be looking to lay the mark in order to see that the Eaglets secure another point against a more formidable opponent, current Ligue 1 champions, Lille. Christophe Galtier would draw upon his in-depth knowledge as former coach of LOSC to inflict pain on the side he oversaw in a three-year spell at the helm. A 4—4—2 formation with Gouri and Ndoye leading the front-line is expected from the 54-year-old coach who was appointed earlier in July for a three-year contract up until June 2024. France U21 attacking midfielder, Alexis Claude-Maurice remains sidelined after going under the knife for a fibula fracture. He will remain unavailable for several months as confirmed in an official club statement late last season.