Puel's changes make the match for Nice in narrow win
In a closely fought Ligue 1 McDonald's contest in Angers, OGC Nice nicked a win off the hosts thanks to a decisive change by Claude Puel. Catch up on all the action from the Stade Raymond Kopa with our match report.
A battling first half
Knowing that a win would edge his visiting side closer to safety, there was far more at stake for Puel and his Nice side, even if Angers may still have harbored faint hopes of a place in Europe ahead of the match. Puel played a strong eleven, with a notable start for youngster Kaïl Boudache in attack, and would have the best of the early going.
On eight minutes, Morgan Sanson played a ball over the top for Kevin Carlos, but the flag was up, before, at the other end, Godine Koyalipou tried a spectacular overhead kick for Angers, but scuffed his effort. Just before the half hour, Nice would have another chance, with a teasing ball by Jonathan Clauss from a set piece just beyond the reach of Juma Bah. Just before the interval, Nice would have two more chances -- the first a tame effort from Sanson and then a dipping shot from Hicham Boudaoui, which forced a diving save from Hervé Koffi.
From an Elye Wahi cross, Melvin Bard puts Le Gym ahead! (0-1) ❤️#scoogcn pic.twitter.com/RghrVKnyu5
— OGC Nice 🇬🇧🇺🇸 (@ogcnice_eng) March 14, 2026
Wahi makes the difference
Into the second half, Nice continued on from the strong play they had shown to end the first, with Koffi making an incredible save to keep a Clauss free kick out of his top corner (51’). Three minutes later, the Burkinabé international was called into action again, this time against Antoine Mendy, who made a late run to force Koffi off his line to close down the angle. After this strong start, the match settled once more, and it was a decisive change by Puel which would shift the match.
Elye Wahi had scored three goals in his first five matches since arriving back in Ligue 1 McDonald's for Les Aiglons, but injuries had prevented him from adding to that total, and it was only this evening that he was able to even be included in a squad for Puel. On the bench from the off, he was brought on midway through the second half, and needed virtually no time at all to make his mark, making a jinking run, with a low cross picking out Melvin Bard who scored from close range (65')
From there, save Amine Sbäi firing wide after Nice failed to clear (82'), the match took on something of an uneven character, with both sides failing to establish a foothold before Wahi had the last word, scoring from range in added time (90 + 5'). The result allowed Nice to pull ten points clear of idle Nantes in the playoff spot. Angers remained in eleventh, a point ahead of Toulouse, ahead of Friday's daunting trip to Lens before the international break.
