Having won it twice already this season, Melvin Bard picked up his third Aiglon of the Match award following Nice’s 1-0 win over Toulouse on Sunday.

Good things come in threes, it seems. Having been named as the Aiglon of the Match in the 0-0 draw with Brest on Matchday 7 as well as in the 1-0 win over OM on Matchday 9, Melvin Bard has again been rewarded by Le Gym’s fans in the wake of his side’s victory over Les Violets. After making his 13th start of the season – only Marcin Bułka and Dante have also started every game so far – the left-back put in another top-notch performance on Sunday.

In fact, Bard was involved in the build-up to the goal, winning the ball cleanly from the feet of Mikkel Desler in the opposition half as if to symbolise the aggression in his pressing, and was generally unbeatable over on the left wing, making nine ball recoveries and successfully completing 100% of his tackles. The former Lyon man, who was also as solid as ever in his duels (winning 63% of them, or 7/11 in total), even saved Les Rouge et Noir from conceding an equaliser when he threw himself in front of an unmarked Desler inside the box to stop him from firing past Bułka in the 61st minute.

With 47% of the votes, Le Gym’s no. 26 finishes ahead of midfielder Morgan Sanson (27%), who, after notching up an assist for Terem Moffi’s goal, delivered another complete display. Never one to spare any effort, Nice’s summer signing proved to be crucial both in defence, making five ball recoveries, and in attack, creating two chances – a performance that earned him a place alongside teammate Bard in L’Équipe’s team of the week for Matchday 13 on Monday morning.

Finally, the scorer of the afternoon’s only goal, Terem Moffi, completes the top three with 9% of the votes. Having performed well both in a central role and on the right side of the attack, the Super Eagle found the back of the net for the fourth time this season against Toulouse.

Hugo Rondet