Man of the Match: Jérémie Boga (7.5): Always elusive with the ball at his feet, the Ivorian winger created a lot of differences on his side and his team’s first dangerous situation came from a lightning acceleration on his part. He scored before the hour mark by pushing Touré to the foul and was also involved in the last goal scored by Guessand. Defensively, he came to Bard’s aid when needed.
OGC Nice (4-3-3)
Bulka (5): The Polish goalkeeper had very little to do on Friday night. Facing a Lorient team that was willing at times but too clumsy in the final third, the former Paris and Chelsea man didn’t have to make any major saves but was reassuring on all his aerial outings.
Bard (7): Once again, the Nice left-back put in a very high-level performance. After a two-week break, he took the opportunity to regain some energy and was impeccable in everything he did tonight. Match after match, he is gaining in reliability and his popularity seems to be soaring.
Dante (6): The Brazilian captain, who is still as indispensable to his team, put in an interesting performance. After a few minutes of getting into the game, he managed his efforts well, showing himself to be concentrated and applied even though the Gym was ahead in this match. A very serious match overall.
Todibo (7): After a clash with his own fans a month and a half ago against Montpellier, the central defender has been back on track for two games now. Solid defensively, he also picked up his second assist of the season in the end of the game for Evann Guessand.
Lotomba (6): After a missed start, the Swiss full-back finally got going in this game. He was reassuring defensively from Bamba’s chance and did a good job of locking down Le Bris in his corridor. It had been a while since he had shown so much desire to help his team get out of a difficult spell. Replaced by Antoine Mendy (78′).
Rosario (5): Relatively neutral game for the Dutch midfielder, who was important in keeping possession but sometimes lacked the promptness to put more pace into the build-up play. We can’t take away his energy expenditure but he still needs to progress in some areas.
Thuram (6.5): It had been a while since the French international midfielder had put in such an interesting and accomplished performance. Fierce, he projected himself forward with the technical quality he is known for and was clean in his clearances. However, he received a blow that bothered him for the rest of the match. Replaced by Hicham Boudaoui (59′).
Sanson (7): Back in OGC Nice’s starting line-up, the midfielder on loan from Aston Villa did the Aiglons a world of good. Very present in the midfield, he scored his first league goal of the season to put his team on track and his activity was constant until his exit. Replaced by Youssouf Ndayishimiye (72′).
Boga (7.5): See above.
Cho (6): If he was unable to make the difference in the first half, the Azurean striker was able to be patient and exploit the spaces at the beginning of the second half. It was his initial cross towards Moffi that allowed Boga to make the difference. He has the confidence of his coach who no longer hesitates to start him. Replaced by Gaëtan Laborde (59′).
Moffi (4): The former Lorient player did not shine against his former team. Often found with his back to goal, he did not weigh enough on the Merlus’ defense and did not create any chances for himself. Replaced by Evann Guessand (71′), who had a lot of opportunities and was logically rewarded in the end of the game following an assist from Todibo.
Lorient (3-4-2-1)
Mvogo (5): On a difficult night for the Merlus, the Swiss goalkeeper did what he could to delay the inevitable. While he could do nothing about any of Nice’s goals, he made saves against Boudaoui, Laborde and Guessand in the last quarter of an hour to prevent Lorient from conceding an even more embarrassing scoreline at the Allianz Riviera.
Touré (2): A game to forget for the former Marseille player. He was guilty of an individual error on Sanson’s opener before turning Boga’s shot into his own net for the break goal. A game in which the player who also played for Auxerre was clearly one of the main architects of Lorient’s defeat.
Adjei (5): The Ghanaian, who arrived in the winter transfer window, has little to reproach himself for tonight. He could not do much about the goals conceded by his team and he did a good job of keeping Moffi quiet in this game who struggled to make an impact on events. It was a frustrating evening for him in the end.
F. Mendy (4): The player who arrived from Amiens last summer continues to gain more and more credit with his coach even though Lorient did not get the desired result. He was not put under clear pressure despite the three goals conceded but was still sometimes caught out of pace by Boga.
T. Le Bris (3): Starting as a left wing-back, the nephew of the Lorient coach did not bring much to the construction of the play. He was never really able to show himself and defensively, it was also complicated, especially against Cho. An evening, like for the whole club of the Merlus, to be totally forgotten. Replaced by Benjamin Mendy (63′).
Louza (4): The former FC Nantes player is guilty of a misunderstanding or a communication error with Isaak Touré on Nice’s first goal. In the absence of Laurent Abergel, he had a very important role in his team’s play but he did not manage to win the midfield battle today. Replaced by Jean-Victor Makengo (90′).
Bakayoko (4): Scorer on the lawn of his former club Monaco a few weeks ago, the 2017 French champion with ASM did not spare his efforts tonight but he was not successful. In a box-to-box profile, he warmed Bulka up with a long-range shot that lacked power but could not prevent the sinking of his team.
Katseris (5): The Greek was interesting in the first few moments, being valuable in the pressing and not being far from pushing Bulka into a mistake. He was one of the most daring Lorientais in this match and was not fully rewarded for his efforts tonight. Replaced by Gédéon Kalulu (63′).
Ponceau (4.5): Lorient’s attacking midfielder had a quality first half, being present on all his team’s counter-attacks. On the other hand, he had more difficulty after the break, especially physically, and his bad back pass almost offered a goal to Boudaoui who had anticipated.
Kari (4): The player on loan from PSG did not really weigh in on this match. If he had an opportunity to put danger into the Nice defense in the first half, he generally struggled to be dangerous. He is guilty of a simulation in the opposition’s box which earned him a yellow card. Replaced by Aiyegun Tosin (78′).
Bamba (3): Difficult performance for the Ivorian striker. In great form in the first few weeks after his arrival, he is now in a slightly more complicated period and this was felt tonight. He had several exploitable balls but he did not make the right choices, as evidenced by his chance at the very beginning of the game. Replaced by Eli Junior Kroupi (62′).
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