Back from Schalke, the Aiglons are already focused on the derby against Bastia that awaits them on Sunday at 17:00. It's a very special fixture, and one in which they hope to once again be buoyed by the fervor of their fans, who turned out at the training centre on Friday to welcome them back after a 40-hour bus ride.

"Is that them, outside?" Forced to cup his ear in order to hear the journalist's question - which had been subsumed by the chants of the Nice fans returning from Gelsenkirchen after a 900-km bus trip - Lucien Favre couldn't get over it. "It's really cool… At Gladbach, it was good too - the fans travelled in numbers to our away games. But here, the supporters are real fanatics! Coming to support us in Schalke, with our chances of qualifying as slim as they were - that's a hell of a trip! There are even some who went through Paris on the way! I know because my wife met a few of them at the airport there. It's unbelievable!"

Après 40h de bus, et malgré la fatigue, les supporters ont lancé le derby avant l'entraînement de cet après-midi. #OGCNSCB (dim. 17h) pic.twitter.com/fN0IrlfUAb

— OGC Nice (@ogcnice) 25 novembre 2016

And against the Corsicans, Lucien Favre hopes that the fans will once again show up in numbers: "It's up to us to do the maximum to make sure there are lots of people there on Sunday. For the moment, we’re doing that by being on top of the table. And we know that against Bastia, it's a derby, a match that's always important."

Against opponents who "are very tough to move around, very tenacious and who have some very dangerous players", the Swiss coach, true to his philosophy, underlined "the importance of playing well" before taking the field and receiving an ovation from the indefatigable fans.

On the same wavelength as his coach, Rémi Walter appeared to have turned the page on the club's European campaign, now focused on the insult suffered last season at the hands of Bastia in the Allianz Riviera (a 2-0 defeat on 26 February this year), which remains Le Gym's last home loss in the league: "We want to get a result on Sunday, in style, in front of our fans. If we can put it all together out on the pitch, if we can be determined and stay focused on our mission, we could end up with something good when it's all over."

L'accueil de Lucien Favre cet après-midi au centre d'entraînement pic.twitter.com/jf2EoxIdna

— OGC Nice (@ogcnice) 25 novembre 2016

Focused on their own game, and carried by the fervor of an entire stadium, the Niçois have every intention of continuing their progress forward with a win that would give them the double satisfaction of maintaining top spot in the league and leaving the Corsicans eating their dust, 23 points adrift.

As the match should be taking place in Azurean sunshine - the sun is tipped to make an appearance at the weekend - make the most of the time remaining to get your tickets. Prices start from €10 (€8 in the Allianz Famille stand) on our online ticket shop as well as the usual ticketing agencies.

F.H.

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