Olympique Lyon vs OGC Nice Prediction: Lyon are cooking at the moment

Olympique Lyon are on the verge of completing one of the greatest comebacks in Ligue 1. They went through the first 10 games of the season without a win and they were trapped in the relegation zone for most parts of the first half of the season. However, at the moment, they have steered clear off the zone and are once again playing like a proper team. Now it's time to keep building and next up for Olympique Lyon is a challenge from the team at the top end of the table. 

OGC Nice visit Olympique Lyon with the desire to get back to winning ways after the defeat to AS Monaco last weekend. But despite the wide margin between OGC Nice and Olympique Lyon, they are well aware of the threat Lyon poses at the moment. Another defeat for Nice would mean they lose their place on the table and Lyon can't afford a setback after just escaping the relegation zone last weekend.

Olympique Lyon

Olympique Lyon deserve their flowers for their recent performances in the Ligue 1. They dug themselves up from the ruins and fought their way out and with their confidence back, they might just be able to make it to the top half of the table in time. 

Olympique Lyon won 4 of their last 5 matches in all competitions. They booked their place in the Coup de France quarter finals by beating LOSC Lille 2-1 in the round of 16. And then they won their last match in the Ligue 1 against Montpellier.

Despite falling behind in the 23rd minute against Montpellier, Lyon completed a comeback as Alexandre Lacazette and Maxence Caqueret scored twice in the 74th and 82nd minutes. Now, they turn their attention to OGC Nice and they hope to grab another surprise win to keep the momentum.

Alexander Lacazette continues to deliver for Olympique Lyon and he will be a player to watch out for in this game. He has scored 11 goals in 18 Ligue 1 games he played in. He's averaging 0.6 goals per game and 1.4 shots on target per game this season. 

Olympique Lyon are currently ranked 13th on the league table with 22 points from 21 matches played. 

OGC Nice

OGC Nice are in for one tough period and their quality and resolve will be tested. At the moment, they face the threat of losing their place on the table, with AS Monaco only 1 point behind them in 3rd place. With the Ligue 1 title almost far out of their reach, they turn their attention to retaining their spot till the end of the season. 

OGC Nice were unbeaten in 4 games before their defeat against AS Monaco last weekend. It was a tough encounter and both teams seemed to match each other in every aspect. Denis Zakaria put AS Monaco ahead in the 16th minute and Gaeten Laborde equalized from the spot in the 37th minute. Denis Zakaria struck again in the 50th minute and Evan Guessand got OGC Nice back on level terms in the 74th minute. Finally, AS Monaco took the lead once again through Aleksandr Golovin in the 77th minute and they went on to win the game at the end of regular time. 

OGC Nice will be without Dante for the trip to the Groupama Stadium. Dante has been a key player for OGC Nice this season. He tops the chart of accurate passes per game by 80% and is second behind Jean Claire Todibo for accurate long balls per game. Also OGC Nice has kept 13 clean sheets this season with Dante at the heart of the defense. His other defensive stats are: 1.1 Interceptions per game, 1.9 tackles per game, 0.10 possession won (final third), 7.3 ball recoveries per game, 2.5 clearance per game. He will surely be a big miss for the Nice team in the upcoming game.

Head to Head

In the last 20 matches between OGC Nice and Olympique Lyon, OGC Nice won 9 matches, while Olympique Lyon won 7 matches and 4 matches ended in a draw.

Analysis and Predictions

Olympique Lyon are on the verge of building something really nice at the moment and they don't seem fazed by the size of the opposition. OGC Nice will be playing under a lot of pressure after their last defeat and Olympique Lyon will be out chasing all 3 points. 

According to the head-to-head record, OGC Nice are unbeaten in the last 3 meetings with Olympique Lyon. Both teams scored in 5 of their last 7 meetings and there were less than 4.5 cards in the last 8 meetings. And there were less than 10.5 corners in their last 5 meetings.

• Lyon to Win or Draw and Over 1.5 Goals at 2.03 Odds
• Alexandre Lacazette to Score Anytime at 2.87 Odds
• Olympique Lyon Win 2-1 at 10.00 Odds