Despite unfavourable circumstances, Nice showed fighting spirit and played well in Monaco. Reduced to 10 men for over an hour after Ali Abdi's harsh sending off, Les Aiglons left the Principality with a point thanks to a brace from Sofiane Diop (2-2), and with the feeling that they deserved more.

Football fans know that a derby defies all logic. Yes, OGC Nice have had a difficult start to the season. Yes, Franck Haise's men are sorely lacking in confidence. Yes, Le Gym were not favourites when they travelled to the Stade Louis-II to take on AS Monaco on Sunday in a crucial Côte d'Azur derby on Matchday 7 of Ligue 1. And yes, Jonathan Clauss and his teammates gave their all on the pitch to secure a draw, a small reward given their excellent start, but one that was well deserved in view of their resilience, playing with one player less from the 34th minute onwards.

SOFIANE DIOP DECISIVE ON HIS OLD STOMPING GROUND

Three days after their defeat at Fenerbahçe in the Europa League (1-2), the Rouge et Noir put in a very good first-half performance. Boosted by the return of Hicham Boudaoui to the starting line-up, the visitors took control of the game, encouraged by their superiority in one-on-one situations. Although they were more incisive, they still lacked efficiency in front of goal, as illustrated by Terem Moffi's chance, who was played in behind before missing his left-footed shot from the edge of the box (12'). After a false alarm, with Antoine Mendy's goal disallowed for a clear offside by the Senegalese international (16'), Les Aiglons stepped up their pace.

Back in Monaco, where he played 105 matches between 2018 and 2022, Sofiane Diop took it upon himself to get his team off the mark before the half-hour point. Alone on the left side of the opposition's box, the attacking midfielder took advantage of a poor clearance by the Monaco defence following a cross from Mendy to curl a perfect shot past Philipp Köhn into the far corner (0-1, 29').

Le Gym, who seemed to be off to a perfect start, including defensively, as evidenced by Yéhvann Diouf's two saves from two Jordan Teze free kicks (23', 33'), found themselves down to 10 men following Ali Abdi's second yellow card (34'). A blow? Not for Les Aiglons, who were determined to redeem themselves on the Rock. At the end of a fine counter-attack initiated by Charles Vanhoutte, Melvin Bard attempted a cross into the opposition box. The ball was deflected by Krépin Diatta's hand, giving the Rouge et Noir a penalty, which was perfectly converted by Diop, scoring his third goal in the last two L1 matches (0-2, 42').

LE GYM NOT SATISFIED

Unfortunately, Coach Haise's men were unable to hold onto their lead for long. In added time at the end of the first half, Mendy inadvertently deflected the ball with his hand in his own penalty area. Diouf stretched out and even got a hand to Ansu Fati's penalty. But it wasn't enough to prevent the principality club from reducing the deficit just before half-time (1-2, 45'+5).

Nice's lack of success was compounded by bad luck after the break. Challenging with Folarin Balogun, Moïse Bombito was trying to prevent his opponent from shooting in the box. The forward collapsed following a (very) slight contact, earning another highly controversial penalty. The Canadian international landed badly after the challenge and had to be stretchered off the pitch. After a long wait, Ansu Fati converted the penalty to bring the two teams level (2-2, 56').

DIOUF SOLID, MENDY IN CHARGE

What happened next? An extremely courageous finish to the match from Les Aiglons. Under pressure from their opponents and stunned by the harshness of the situation, Les Rouge et Noir refused to give up. Even George Ilenikhena's header, which flew just past Diouf's post (76'), did not discourage them. Le Gym's goalkeeper made a string of saves during a breathless final quarter of an hour, extended by nine minutes of added time. A fine save from Ilenikhena (80'), a timely rush out to deny the Monaco striker (82'), a decisive punch to deflect Maghnes Akliouche's cross-shot (90'+6)... The Senegal international was everywhere, following the example of his national team-mate Antoine Mendy. The young Nice defender, who had a heroic game, impressed with his physical strength and determination throughout, like when he blocked Stanis Idumbo's dangerous shot (88').

While this point may not be good news for Le Gym's points tally, it does come as a breath of fresh air at the end of a difficult spell.

Les Aiglons will return to action after the international break, hosting Lyon (Matchday 8, kick-off on Saturday 18 October at 5pm).

Hugo Rondet