Although keen not to shirk our own responsibilities as a club and aware that our results cannot be explained by refereeing decisions alone, OGC Nice considers it necessary to question the consistency of the decisions made in recent weeks, which have all been unfavourable to the club.

In five consecutive Ligue 1 games between Matchday 20 and Matchday 24, comparable situations have led to radically different decisions: a penalty awarded for a minor handball offence against Brest, a decision overturned by the VAR against Monaco, contact that went unpunished against Lyon, another penalty conceded away to Lorient as well as similar fouls ignored and bookings for simulation away to Paris FC.

“This sequence of events raises questions,” declared Maurice Cohen, OGC Nice’s Vice-President with authority to operate. “We’re not looking for excuses. We accept our responsibilities as a club, but between Matchday 20 and Matchday 24, similar situations have been judged in totally different ways. How can such a variation in interpretation over such a short period of time be explained? How can we ask our players to adapt their behaviour when the same incidents are read differently from one game to the next? The footage exists; it is objective and deserves consistent analysis.”

Beyond these situations, OGC Nice would also like to draw attention to the treatment of Kaïl Boudache.

“Ever since his professional debut, Kaïl Boudache has seemed to be the subject of recurring suspicion,” Cohen continued. “However, a foul doesn’t depend on the player’s size or profile. A foul is a foul. When a player is knocked off balance inside the penalty area – be it with contact to the legs or with a hand on the shoulder – after gaining the upper hand, the Laws of the Game must be applied to the same standard for everyone. They cannot be interpreted subjectively.”

OGC Nice respects referees and the difficulty of their task, but this respect cannot be one-way. Demanding uniformity and consistence is an essential condition of sporting equity.

“We are simply asking for consistency,” Cohen concluded. “The competition’s credibility relies on a clear and uniform application of the rules. Today, it is evident that this consistency is lacking. The accumulation of contradictory decisions between Matchday 20 and Matchday 24 undermines the confidence of those involved and damages the competition’s credibility.”

OGC Nice hereby calls upon the relevant authorities to fully assess this situation, to guarantee a clear, consistent and uniform application of the rules and to review the disciplinary sanction imposed on Kaïl Boudache on Matchday 24.

In this regard, an independent analysis published on social network X highlights the significant impact of refereeing decisions on the league table since the start of the season, with OGC Nice appearing to be the most affected team.

Professional football cannot prosper without perceived justice. This justice must be the same for everyone in every league match.

VIDEO

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