After losing in Nice, Les Verts remain in Ligue 2

Context

It’s this Friday night at the Allianz Riviera that everything will be decided for Philippe Montanier’s men! After ending in a 0-0 draw in which the defenses got the better of the offenses, the first leg of the playoff between Saint-Étienne and Marseille leaves the Greens with every chance to win and return to the McDonald’s Ligue 1. 

Starting XI

Les Verts started with the same starting XI as in the first leg, but this time Kevin Pedro played on the left side of the defense, leaving the opposite flank to Dennis Appiah. Aside from this positional change, the Loire team’s lineup remained the same.

👥 Le XI stéphanois pour ce barrage retour ! 💚

Pas de changement d’homme à signaler avant cet #OGCNASSE ! 👊 pic.twitter.com/XxPRayip5R

— AS Saint-Étienne (@ASSEofficiel) May 29, 2026

Game scenario

The Forez players got off to a strong start, led by Irvin Cardona. The Maltese international first attempted a header that wasn’t powerful enough to redirect the cross (7th), and then looked to open the scoring off a cross from Dennis Appiah, but his goal was disallowed due to Lucas Stassin being offside in the path of the ball (9th). The Verts’ No. 7 was again on the mark when he delivered a first-time cross to Lucas Stassin, but despite the center forward’s dive, his shot sailed over the crossbar (19th). After the first 20 minutes, the Aiglons began to find their footing, with Wahi hitting the post (20th) and then Clauss seeing his shot deflected by Kevin Pedro (22'). After this strong spell by Nice, the game evened out. The Greens created two big chances through Augustine Boakye (26th) and Lucas Stassin (35th), and the home team responded with a powerful header by Dante (39th) and a hard shot by Mendy (43rd), but Gautier Larsonneur parried the first and dove to save the second. Lively and hard-fought, the first half ended in a scoreless draw. 

Nice came out strong right after halftime with two shots by Wahi (50', 54'), but ASSE wasn't to be outdone, with Lucas Stassin hitting the post (54'). Wahi tried again, but Mickël Nadé, who had come on at halftime, made the save (54'). Just past the hour mark, the Greens conceded on a volley by Clauss, who connected with a clearance (1-0, 62'), and Nice saw two consecutive shots denied by Gautier Larsonneur, who deflected shots from Boudache and then Wahi (67'). With a quarter of an hour to go before the final whistle, VAR flagged a handball by Nice, and Zuriko Davitashvili beat Diouf to the far post for the equalizer (1-1, 78th), but Boudache put the Gym back in front shortly after (2-1, 81st). In the closing moments, Wahi stood out twice, capitalizing on defensive lapses to break away (3-1, 87th) and then seal the victory for the Aiglons (4-1, 90th + 2).

Coming next

After a season of ups and downs, Les Verts were unable to defeat the Ligue 1 team on its home turf. They will begin their next season in the second tier.