The Allianz Riviera has become a place where Nice carry their recent history onto the pitch. When Lille arrive on Sunday for a 17:15 Ligue 1 kick-off, the home side will be trying to end a league run that has lasted 326 days without a victory in front of their own supporters.
Nice last won a Ligue 1 match at home on 29 October 2025, when they beat Lille 2-0. The return fixture comes with the club bottom of the table and still looking for the force, intensity and leadership that have been missing in the opening weeks of the season.
A rebuilt squad, an old burden
The team Lille face will be markedly different from the one that started that last home league win. Of that starting XI, only goalkeeper Yéhvann Diouf and midfielder Sofiane Diop remain fit and regular starters.
Nice reshaped their group heavily during the summer, bringing in eight players while 17 left. Yet the difficult home sequence has survived the overhaul: nine draws and four defeats in Ligue 1 since the Lille win.
There have been isolated successes at the Allianz Riviera in other competitions, with two Coupe de France wins, one Europa League victory and one Ligue 1/Ligue 2 play-off success. None, however, has lifted the league drought hanging over the club.
Olivier Pantaloni, who succeeded Franck Haise and Claude Puel, said the previous season’s troubles cannot be ignored, but insisted his focus is on the present.
“I was not here for what happened last season, but we have not won since I arrived either, and that is what matters to me now,” Pantaloni said. “There may be traces of doubt. We have to take account of what came before, but we also have to move on.”
Meetings bring a demand for greater intensity
Nice’s start has been complicated by interrupted pre-season preparations for several expected starters, including Elye Wahi, Niels Nkounkou, Axel Witsel and Mohammed Amoura. Pantaloni’s side are still searching for momentum, as well as players capable of setting standards within the group.
The coach pointed to Laurent Abergel, whom he previously worked with at Lorient, as an example of the influence he wants to develop. Abergel is sidelined by a cruciate ligament injury, leaving Nice short of obvious on-field leaders.
“At the start of the season I mentioned Laurent Abergel,” Pantaloni explained. “At Lorient, there was a clear difference in the collective commitment when he was at training and when he was not. We do not necessarily have that type of player today, but we want to create that across the whole squad, with certain players becoming reference points.”
Jonathan Clauss has taken the captaincy, while Diouf, Youssouf Ndayishimiye and Witsel are still finding their rhythm. New signing Alidu Seidu has yet to be fully integrated into the side.
This week, Nice held one meeting involving the entire squad and another with the senior players. The conclusion was not that the group lack good intentions, but that they must bring a higher level of engagement to matches.
“It is not really an attitude problem, because there is a desire to do well,” Pantaloni said on Friday. “But there has been a realisation about the intensity and commitment required in a match. We felt a difference in training. Now it has to continue.”
Defender Mohamed Abdelmonem, back this season after a year out of the game, called for patience as Nice attempt to reverse the situation.
“We have to remain patient,” Abdelmonem said. “We know when the last win here was. We need to stay united to turn things around.”
