The match: 2-1
After five years of absence in the elite, Lens missed his return, losing in Nice (1-2). The promoted opened the scoring quickly on a penalty from Gaël Kakuta following a hand from Dante after a cross from Ignatius Ganago (1-0, 11th). The two northern recruits distinguished themselves but the former Niçois missed the knockout, a bit like Raheem Sterling with Manchester City against Lyon in the quarter-finals of the Champions League (1-3). Ganogo, alone against the empty goal after a good cross from Florian Sotoca, placed his recovery above (21st). A turning point in this match.
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Because two minutes later, Nice equalized by Amine Gouiri (see below), on the first Nice shot of the match (1-1, 23rd). In the 32nd minute, the OGCN lost its Brazilian defender Robson Bambu, visibly hit in a thigh and replaced by Andy Pelmard. Besides the incredible opportunity missed by Ganogo, Lens, to aim for a better result, could have benefited from a second penalty, much more obvious than the first. The referee had already relied on the VAR to sanction the hand, or rather the elbow, of Dante. Mr. Miguelgorry, alerted by the video assistance, returned to consult the images twenty minutes later on another disputed action, the hand, or rather the arm this time, in the area of Alexis Claude-Maurice (28th).
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But, on that occasion, he did not award a penalty to Racing Club de Lens, remaining on his first decision, a corner, despite protests from visitors. In the second half, Lens had another great opportunity through Simon Banza but the attacker came up against Walter Benitez, the Riviera goalkeeper, well out in his feet (69th). The promoted ended up paying for his missed opportunities. Gouiri, again, came to deliver the Gym from a new coiled strike (2-1, 70th).
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The player: the two jewels of Gouiri
It took two brilliant inspirations from Amine Gouiri to get the Aiglons out of the deadlock. Arrived from Lyon this summer for € 7 million, the striker first wound up a magnificent strike from the right at the entrance to the area. The ball ended up in the top corner of the Lensois goalkeeper after hitting the bar (1-1, 23rd).
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Jean-Louis Leca also remained stuck in the second half. After a ball lost stupidly by his teammates in the axis, Gouiri again found himself in a position to wind a shot from the right at the entrance to the area. He did not deprive himself of it and this time she ended up in the small net (2-1, 75th). The former OL gave a precious victory to the men of Patrick Vieira and promises to be one of the attractions of the season.
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At 20, Gouiri became the youngest Nice player to score a brace in his first game with the club in the past 70 seasons. (Opta)
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