Ligue 1 McDonald’s, Round 31, 02/05/2026
In a game with big implications at both ends of the table, it was OGC Nice who came out the happier side as they created a six-point buffer over AJ Auxerre in the relegation playoff spot. RC Lens saw their narrow lead evaporate late into the second half when Saud Abdulhamid’s red card was immediately punished on the follow-up free kick.
It would be a dress rehearsal for the Coupe de France final as Lens travelled south to the French Riviera to face Nice. The visitors hoped to set the tempo early when Mamadou Sangaré’s miscued shot found Odsonne Édouard in the box. The striker fired on the turn, initially wrongfooting Yehvann Diouf, although the keeper managed to scramble a save.
Lens looked the more dominant side as Nice sat back and waited to pick out their moments. Juma Bah had the best opportunity of the half for the hosts when he created a little separation from Samson Baidoo at a corner. The Nice centre-back leapt to reach Tom Louchet’s corner, but his effort was straight at Robin Risser.
Tempers began to flare late into the first half after Malang Sarr body checked Antoine Mendy. Sarr was already on a yellow, but the Lens defender managed to escape what looked like an easy decision for the referee.
The second half threatened to be a touch more open, with Allan Saint-Maximin looking to force a moment of magic for Lens. The forward had done similar the previous weeks, having scored in Lens’s two previous games. And he would soon make it three in three.
Lens won the ball close to their goal off a Nice corner and launched a rapid counter. Adrien Thomasson slipped a beautifully weighted pass for Saint-Maximin to run onto past Nice’s high line. Diouf decided to close the forward down, and soon found that he was no match in a foot race, as Saint-Maximin rounded him to play a trickling shot into the open net.
There would be a twist in the tale late in the game when Saud Abdulhamid brought down Sofiane Diop just outside the box. It was an easy decision for the referee, with the Lens wing-back denying a goalscoring opportunity. The red was flashed, and Diop stood over the free kick. His effort struck the wall, but broke through, where the substitute Ali Abdi was fast to react, snatching possession after his dummy run over the deadball and poked his shot home.
For the second weekend in a row, Lens would have to settle for a point. After Paris Saint-Germain dropped points against FC Lorient earlier in the day, it felt like a big opportunity missed. With three games left for Lens and PSG, six points separate the league leaders and their closest rivals.
Yehvann Diouf, 4
It was a notable lapse in concentration from Diouf to allow Saint-Maximin a clean shot on an open goal when he leapt off his line to close down the Lens man. He was sort of damned if he did, damned if he didn’t in this situation. His defence was beaten by Thomasson’s ball, and he was the last line.
Kojo Peprah Oppong, 6
Juma Bah, 6
Antoine Mendy, 6
Melvin Bard, 4
Had some good moments, notably in the first half when he denied Udol from close range. However, he played Saint-Maximin onside for the Lens opener.
Morgan Sanson, 6
Hicham Boudaoui, 6
Tom Louchet, 5
Sofiane Diop, 6
A quiet first half, but he was fully involved in Nice’s late rescue act. He won the red card, and then his free kick wormed its way into a position where the substitute Ali Abdi could finish.
Mohamed-Ali Cho, 5
Mohamed Ali Cho deputised well as the striker, with Elye Wahi ruled out due to injury. He was perhaps a bit better off the ball than on it, but when Nice play without much possession, that’s very much a valuable asset.
Kaïl Boudache, 5
Robin Risser, 5
Malang Sarr, 4
99 times out of a 100, Sarr would have been sent off in the first half. The centre-back certainly was living a charmed life to escape punishment.
Samson Baidoo, 6
Admittedly, the defender lost his marker in the first half, allowing Juma Bah a dangerous effort from point-blank, but that was an anomaly in an otherwise good game.
Ismaëlo Ganiou, 5
Matthieu Udol, 5
Adrien Thomasson, 6
Mamadou Sangaré, 6
Saud Abdulhamid, 2
In a way, Nice likely would have called it justice that they finally saw Lens receive a red. Abdulhamid had been having a good game, but his decision to bring down Diop and risk his teammates playing out the rest of the game with a man disadvantage backfired spectacularly.
Allan Saint-Maximin, 7
If you were feeling stingy, you could have called his performance in front of goal wasteful. However, I think that is missing the importance of the former Newcastle man in recent weeks. He’s brought fresh legs to a team that has shown signs of lagging at the final hurdle.
Odsonne Édouard, 4
Five games without a goal for the former Crystal Palace striker. He threatened with the first effort in the game, but after that faded into the background.
Florian Thauvin, 4
A very quiet evening for the 2018 World Cup winner. Only a few moments of note, in a game where he was, for large swathes, a passenger. He kissed the crossbar with a long-range effort that would have wrapped up the evening in the second half.
