After a thrilling penalty shootout, Les Aiglons eliminated AJ Auxerre (0-0 + 4-2 penalties) on Saturday evening, securing their spot in the Round of 32 of the Coupe de France.

Les Aiglons certainly have enormous heart! Facing the best Ligue 2 attack in their Coupe de France opener, Les Rouge et Noir pushed, battled and tried their luck for 92 minutes in vain. It was ultimately during the penalty shootout that Le Gym made the difference. Similar to their match against PSG two years ago in the Round of 16 of the Coupe de France, Marcin Bulka was in goal. Like two years ago, the Polish goalkeeper was magnificent, stretching at full length to turn away Ado Onaiwu's attempt, after previously denying Perrin's effort with the help of the post. Gaëtan Laborde, the captain at kick-off, then stepped up to ensure Les Aiglons' qualified for the Round of 32 (4-2 on penalties).

A qualification that Francesco Farioli's men truly earned. Faced with a string of absences due to injuries (Thuram, Diop, Bouanani, Baldé, Perraud, Sanson), suspensions (Dante, Todibo, Bard), and players called up for the ACN (Atal, Boudaoui, Boga), the Nice coach was forced to adapt. Out went the 4-3-3, replaced by a 3-4-3, with Laborde and Claude-Maurice supporting Moffi.

LE GYM INSPIRED BY THE ACADEMY

On the pitch, four products of the OGC Nice Academy were in the starting line-up: Antoine Mendy, Ayoub Amraoui, Tom Louchet and Reda Belahyane. Despite this youthfulness, the home side did not abandon its principles: short passes, high pressing and aggressiveness in recovery. A combination that could have allowed Moffi to open the scoring, but the Super Eagle's shot was deflected by Théo De Percin before Tom Louchet missed his first-time effort (3').

This was the beginning of a series of saves for the Auxerre goalkeeper, vigilant in repelling Rosario's well-placed effort (16') and Moffi's powerful shot (32'). After that, the match was perfectly managed by a stand-out Antoine Mendy. In his second consecutive start, the 19-year-old defender delivered a solid performance, looking strong in his duels and comfortable with his distribution

LES AIGLONS LACKED END PRODUCT

This lack of end product did not slow down Les Aiglons, as they started the second half strongly led by Reda Belahyane and Alexis Claude-Maurice, starting moves between the lines. However, Laborde, found in the box by a clever flick from Moffi, was once again denied by De Percin (56'). Gradually, the Niçois began to lose momentum. Rosario (75') and Lotomba (87') faced resistance from Pellenard and Jubal as they counter-attacked. Then, they were almost left disappointed in added time when Gaëtan Perrin, quickly took a corner and struck forcefully at the near post. Fortunately, Bulka was perfectly on his toes and and able to deal with the effort (90+2').

BULKA THE HERO

This was confirmed by Le Gym's last line of defence during the penalty shootout. While he lacked a touch of fortune for Jubal's penalty, which hit the Polish keeper and then the post, luck turned in his favour with Perrin's attempt, this time deflecting off the post and then his shoulder. Quick to launch himself for the next strike from Onaiwu, Bulka capped off the work of Moffi, Rosario, Lotomba and Laborde, who each scored from the spot. Les Aiglons will therefore have their spot in the Round of 32, scheduled for the weekend of 20-21 January.