Ligue 1, Sunday, 09.03.2025 at 20:45
The coaching appointment did not pay off for Olympique Lyon. Paulo Fonseca was banned for a whopping nine months by the French FA after just one month in charge. The reason is a blatant outburst in last week’s match against Brest.
While the Portuguese is still on the international sidelines, he will be absent from Ligue 1 until December.
Even without the head coach, I’m expecting a turbulent game on Sunday evening in the south of France, sending the goal of both teams from NEO.bet into the race.
An important game in Ligue 1 in the battle for the Champions League places. Ahead of the start of matchday 25, Nice are third and Lyon sixth, with just seven points between them. The visitors are naturally going for a win to move closer.
However, our bookmakers see the advantage for OGC on Sunday, assigning odds of 2.00, Lyon have odds of 3.55 and the draw bet is in the same range. Nice go into the top game with a first-class series
The team has won four games in a row and has collected the most points after PSG in the second half of the season so far, seven games, five wins and one draw. Only against Lille was there a 2-1 defeat in January, but that was almost two months ago.
The 2-0 win against Marseille in the southern French derby was followed by 2-0 wins against Lens and Montpellier and 3-1 wins against Le Havre and St. Etienne. In between, there was a 1-1 draw against Toulouse, but also the tournament exit in the cup and the Europa League.
While Lyon went straight through to the round of 16 in sixth place without any problems, Nice finished second last without a win. But with their current league form, direct qualification for the Champions League now beckons!
But Lyon, among others, still have something against them. After beating Brest 2:1 in the Europa League, the former dominators of the French league followed up with a strong 3:1 away win in the first leg against Bucharest.
It was their fourth competitive win in five matches. Only PSG managed to come out on top with a hard-fought 3:2 win against Lyon. Their only defeat since February, apart from the 3:2 against PSG, was another 3:2 against Marseille.
In any case, I find the offense impressive. Lyon scored at least twice in every game during this period, but only kept a clean sheet against Reims.
Given this turbulent record and the style of play, I’m a little perplexed that we’re still getting odds above the 1.50 mark for both teams to score. Especially since the most important attacking players are available on both sides.
The odds are due to the fact that Nice have conceded the second fewest goals in the second half of the season so far. At home, it is even the fewest in the league. With nine goals, OGC are the only club still in single figures.
However, it has also played two fewer games at home than various other teams, to put this figure into perspective. And now they visit an opponent who has scored at least one goal in 22 of their previous 24 matches!
And Nice? Didn’t score in just one match in 2025. So those are numbers that speak for my bet! And then there’s the fact that the visitors will be pressing hard to reduce the gap in the league.
At the same time, they have the Europa League game and the trip to Bucharest in their legs, which could benefit Nice.
Lyon and Nice have one of the strongest offenses in the league, but also allow some chances, as the numbers show. In an unpopular ranking that tracks goals conceded, the teams are in the top third of the table.
The first leg was already a nail-biter. Lyon came out on top with a 4:1 victory.
The 2.86 to 2.16 expected goals and the shot ratio of 16 to 16 also confirms that the goal of both teams should be the right choice on Sunday!
Conclusion: The first leg was already a tough one, which Lyon won 4:1. It will be really difficult for Alexandre Lacazette’s side to make it three this time. They are up against the best home defense, which has yet to lose a game at home.
However, with ten games to go and Nice seven points off the Champions League places, only victory counts for the visitors, who have scored at least one goal 23 times in their last 25 appearances.
There is a lot at stake and Nice have only failed to score once so far in the new year, so everything speaks for the following bet! At NEO.bet you can also secure a €10 free bet before making your first deposit!
My Nice Lyon tip: Both teams will score
