OGC Nice were beaten by Braga on Thursday on Matchday 6 of the league phase of the Europa League (0-1). Le Gym are officially out of the competition.

Despite a lot of chances in a second half that they totally dominated, the Aiglons couldn't find the back of the net at the Allianz Riviera. Facing a Portuguese side sitting comfortably in 7th place in the standings before kick-off, Franck Haise's men gave their all to get their Europa League campaign going. But a lack of clinical finishing once again let them down on Thursday evening.

A POOR START TO THE GAME

Before taking control of the game and putting their opponents on the back foot, Tom Louchet and his teammates struggled in the first half. Troubled by the control of a technically superior Braga side, Nice suffered a few scares in front of goal. Maxime Dupé, starting for the first time this season in goal for the Côte d'Azur side, quickly showed his reflexes to deflect Amine El Ouazzani's attempt (14'), who was dangerous again four minutes later with a pivot shot, this time off target (18').

With their defence struggling on the left, the Rouge et Noir finally cracked after a fine team move finished off by former Barcelona player Pau Víctor (0-1, 28'). Kevin Carlos tried to respond, but his powerful header from Louchet's free kick was tipped over the bar by opposing goalkeeper Lukáš Horníček (35').

LE GYM PUSH BUT FAIL TO SCORE

After the break, Les Aiglons showed a completely different side to their game. Chances began to rain down on the Portuguese goal, but Nice's poor finishing and some fine saves from the Braga keeper prevented the scoreline from changing. Kevin Carlos' close-range effort (53') and Isak Jansson's point-blank shot (59') deserved better, but Horníček was there to deny them. The substitutes contributed at the end of the match, with Mohamed-Ali Cho lively but unable to finish, as shown with his one-on-one chance in front of the keeper (74').

The Côte d'Azur forward once again lacked precision when picking up a second ball in the penalty area (82'). Maxime Dupé's aggressive forays forward on the last corners of the game did nothing to change the outcome: Le Gym were once again defeated in the Europa League and can no longer qualify mathematically. Franck Haise's troops will try to bounce back at Lens this Sunday in Ligue 1 (5:15pm).