Can Nice turn nasty to grab win at Lyon?

Nice coach, Francesco Farioli, would appreciate Homer Simpson’s philosophy that trying is the first step to failure. 

At the end of November, Nice may not have been true title rivals for PSG, however a 13-match unbeaten streak from the start of the season was certainly reason to believe that the Mediterranean club were solid picks for a top-three finish.

When winter really kicked in – probably not so brutal on the south coast of France – Nice’s form went down the tubes with half of the team’s next eight Ligue 1 matches being lost, topped off by last weekend’s punishing 2-3 home defeat by Monaco. Nice are still in second but face strong challenges from Monaco as well as resurgent sides such as Lille, Lens and Rennes. 

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“The race for Europe is still long and there will be lots of difficult turns to take,” announced a philosophical Farioli, trying calm everyone down. 

Lyon would love to have Nice’s champagne problems. Most of the season has been a wretched one in the relegation zone. However, back-to-back wins sees a less stressed side looking for the comfort of a safe mid-table spot for the rest of the season. 

Friday 2:50PM ET: Nice vs. Lyon - live on beIN SPORTS 

Will PSG be caught cold after Champions League challenge?

PSG’s one and only defeat in Ligue 1 this season came at home against Nice, when the aforementioned rivals were on a hot streak. 

While Saturday’s trip to take on Nantes might look like a perfunctory win on paper, stand by for something very different on grass. PSG will be relieved to have taken a 2-0 lead in the Champions League tie against Real Sociedad, after Luis Enrique bemoaned a first half that was a “nightmare” for the club. A break and an 11-point lead at the top of the standings might the first reasons for PSG to take their foot off the the gas and set themselves up for a slip. 

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The second is a Nantes forward line that is very different in mid-February than it was just a few weeks ago. An early end of AFCON for Egypt’s Mostafa Mohamed saw the striker back leading the line for Nantes. The club also brought in Tino Kadawere on loan from Lyon. Both were on the scoresheet last weekend in a 2-1 win at Toulouse which ended a dismal run of just one draw and five losses in Ligue 1. 

If PSG’s defense are not on their toes from minute one on Saturday, then it might another Nice day for the league leaders. But not in the adjectival way. 

Saturday 2:50PM ET: Nantes vs. PSG - live on beIN SPORTS 

Will Marseille blow yet another must-win match?

It’s hard to know what’s worse: an angry Velodrome or an indifferent one. 

The Marseille players will probably go for option A, but you never know with Gennaro Gattuso who is more of a feisty, coach-shoving Kelce Travis type who feeds off aggression. 

Last week, we wrote that Marseille absolutely, completely had to beat lowly Metz or all hell would break lose. They didn’t. And it didn’t. Hell breaking lose, that is. In fact, the 1-1 draw in the Velodrome to add to the team’s three previous draws in Ligue 1 felt like it was met with a collective ‘meh’. The club’s belligerent coach says he’s up for the fight and won’t be packing his bags, but is he alone in this? Will we see ‘Meh-Seille’ on Sunday?

Sunday’s opponents, Brest, will certainly be up for the fight. The Breton side are in fourth having a best-ever campaign and very much playing with house money, considering the team are fighting for a European spot as opposed to relegation. A passionate crowd and motivated squad might be too much for a jet-lagged Marseille side who were in action against Shakhtar Donetsk on Thursday in the Europa League. 

Sunday 2:30PM ET: Brest vs. Marseille - live on beIN SPORTS