Diop's early goal set up Nice's better chances at Angers

Nice won 2-0 after Diop's goal inside two minutes, and their chances were better than they usually manage.

Sofiane Diop had Nice ahead inside two minutes at the Stade Raymond Kopa, with Mohamed Amoura providing the pass that started it. Nice did not sit back on that lead. They kept creating chances, and the chances they created were of the sort that tend to be taken. Angers, who arrived fifteenth in the table, had to find a way back into a match that was not going their way.

The clearest sign came in the shooting. Nice took 16 shots, where their away average is 11.7 and the league average is 12.8, and eight of them were on target. Angers had 11 shots, close to their home average of 11.1, but only three were on target, so their volume was ordinary while their accuracy was not.

Expected goals is a rough guide to chance quality, built from where and how a shot was taken, and it tells the same story. Nice's total sat well above their away norm of 1.42 and the league figure of 1.41. Angers managed 0.7 against a home norm of 1.21, so their attack was less threatening than usual. Fourteen of Nice's shots came from inside the box, against seven for Angers.

The ball was not where the game was decided. Nice had 54% possession, close to their away average of 53.2%, and Angers had 46%, against a usual 47.2% at home. Both sides held the ball roughly as they normally do, so the difference lay in what each side did with it.

Angers' defence allowed roughly what it usually does. The chances Nice created matched the level Angers normally concede at home, and the goals they conceded were about what they expect to concede in this fixture. Anthony Lopes made six saves, the most of anyone on the pitch, and his rating of 7.9 was the highest of any Angers player.

Jonathan Clauss added the second in the 78th minute, assisted by Gauthier Hein, and Nice finished without conceding, which is better than their away average of 1.3 goals against. Angers, who usually score one goal per home match on average, failed to score at all. They were also booked three times, against one yellow card for Nice.

Angers have eight points from nine matches, have conceded 17 goals and sit fifteenth. Nice are eighth with 14 points, 13 goals scored and 12 conceded. Angers' last six matches have produced one win, two draws and three defeats.

Player of the matchJ. Clauss1 goal8.2

S. Diop1 goal8.2

Anthony Lopes6 saves7.9

Y. Diouf4 saves7.7