Speaking in the post-match press conference, Nice coach Lucien Favre spoke of the good overall performance of his squad, but highlighted a costly inability to take the chances that came their way.

Coach, do you think your team did enough to try and turn this tie around?

Yes. We created chances, especially in the first half, one or two in the second. The problem is that we didn't score when we were dominating. We hit the bar, the post and they scored on the counterattack. We knew what we had to do to go through. In the second half we tried, but we couldn't do it. But it was still a good performance.

Do you think you lost this tie in the first leg?

We believed we could do it today. Everything is possible in football. If the ball had gone in off the bar... But it's also clear that the first leg hurt us. When you lose 3-2 at home, it's tough. We have a few regrets over the two legs. With more clinical finishing, we could have done it.

How do you explain this difficulty in front of goal?

In general terms, we should already be creating more chances. But in the first leg, I haven't forgotten that we could have been leading 3-0 at half-time. It's the little details that make the difference... We have to keep going.

Was the cold a problem for your players?

Not at all.

Balotelli could have been the hero tonight…

His shot against the bar was incredible. The goalkeeper didn't even move. Five centimetres lower and it would have been a goal, just like the free-kick. With the two chances we had in the second half, two one-on-ones, that's four great chances in the match.

Are you frustrated?

We missed the chance at home. We played well for 60 minutes before being reduced to ten men. We made mistakes and they proved very costly.

What do you think of this Lokomotiv side, after these two games?

They are very good in the final third and are very dangerous going forward. They have very technical players such as Fernandes, Farfan, the Miranchuk brothers and Ari. They are very good when they take the initiative, but also dangerous on the counter, because they are quick and strong. But we also saw that they can struggle, because over the two legs we had a lot of chances to score.

What are your goals in Ligue 1 now?

Our philosophy remains the same. We need top pick up points to get as many as possible. We need to progress each day, with our technical details, a passing choices, the pressing etc. We know that every match is going to be tight.

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