Leaders of the UEFA Europa League group K edition 2017/2018 with 100% use, Nice and Lazio duel on this Thursday, October 19th. The match, which is part of the schedule of the third round of the group stage, the last of the first round, takes place from 15h (Brasília time) at the Allianz Riviera in Nice. Vitesse of the Netherlands and Waregem of Belgium complete the key but have not yet scored.
Nice’s recent performance
After winning the third place in the 2016/2017 French Championship season, Nice signaled that they did not have enough good enough in number and quality to divide between the national and the continental tournament.
On Sunday, October 15, he suffered his second loss in Ligue 1. Away from home, he took 2 to 0 of Montpellier. In the previous day, in his dominions, had been surpassed by Olympique de Marseilles by 4 to 2.
Thus, with 10 points (three wins, one draw and five losses), he occupies a modest fourteenth position. It is closer to Dijon, eighteenth, which opens the relegation zone with six points than Nantes, fifth place, which closes the group of classified for European tournaments, which accumulated 17 points.
The weak campaign in no time showed reflexes in the international games. In Belgium, Nice opened with a 5-1 win over Waregem. Then on the Riviera, he scored 3-0 at Vitesse without much trouble.
To try and maintain this good sequence in the Europa League, coach Lucien Favre has the advantage of not having serious problems of injury or suspension involving his main players. The only likely fall is against striker Mickael Le Bihan, bruised. However, it is not a holder, but only an option for the reservation bank.
The current form of Lazio
Lazio, on the other hand, does well internally and externally. Having managed to take home the Italian Super Cup by beating the powerful Juventus 3-2 at the start of the 2017/2018 season on Saturday, October 14, the result was even more impressive against Turin’s alvinegro. In the opponents’ home, he came at a disadvantage, but turned the score and won 2-1 in the match for the eighth round of the Italian Championship.
By reaching 19 points (six wins, one draw and one defeat), Lazio started to divide third place with Juventus, although it is disadvantageous when using the tiebreaker criteria. The difference for Napoli, leader, is five points.
This despite coach Simone Inzaghi being faced with significant injury problems. Brazilian midfielder Felipe Anderson, for example, who has been one of the team’s top players in recent seasons, injured, has yet to make his official debut in 2017/2018. Defender Dusan Basta (five Serie A games without a goal) and Wallace (three games without a goal) and midfielder Jordan Lukaku (six games without a goal) are in the infirmary.
History of the bouts between Nice and Lazio
The teams met only once. In a friendly played in 2013, Lazio won 1-0.
PREDICTION: Both teams to score / YES @ 3.20
