Nice vs Auxerre

Nice will play Auxerre at the Allianz Riviera in Ligue 1 on Friday in an attempt to strengthen their bid for Champions League football.

AJA is playing at its finest level this year, while Les Aiglons will be looking to bounce back from their defeat the last time out.

Before losing to Lyon on March 9, Franck Haise's Nice had a four-game winning streak. However, they will enter Friday's encounter with a two-point lead in the top flight's last automatic Champions League qualifying berth.

They dropped to third place with 46 points after their 2-0 setback, only two points ahead of fifth-place Lille and fourth-place Monaco, who both closed the gap on Les Aiglons last weekend.

The hosts will be optimistic of making amends and gaining as many points as possible against a mid-table club this time around, though, given it was their first home league loss of the season and their first in all competitions since November.

However, their opponents have gotten better in recent weeks, and Haise's team lost the rematch to Auxerre 2-1 in August.

Nice would still be far behind league leaders Paris Saint-Germain, but a win on Friday may move them over Marseille and into second place based on goal differential.

Christoph Pelissier’s Auxerre endured a challenging period, going 11 games without a win from early December to mid-February. However, they have shown signs of recovery recently, securing victories in two of their last three matches, and the manager will be hoping this marks a turning point for his team.

In their most recent outing, Auxerre claimed a 2-0 away win against Reims, with goals from Theo Bair and Bournemouth loanee Hamed Traore. Pelissier will also be encouraged by his defense, which has now kept two clean sheets in their last three games.

This victory propelled Auxerre past Rennes into 11th place in the standings, where they currently sit with 31 points. Despite the improvement, they remain 11 points adrift of Lyon, who occupy a European qualification spot.

Away from home, Auxerre have struggled for consistency, managing just one win since early November. However, they can take some confidence from their recent away form, having avoided defeat in their last two road games—beating Reims and securing a 2-2 draw against Brest on February 14.

A win on Friday could see Auxerre draw level on points with 10th-placed Toulouse and potentially close the gap to just eight points from the European places, with eight matches remaining in the season.