TOPS
Boubacar Kouyaté, power and solidity
This Saturday, it was the entire Metz defense that proved heroic to defend this success on the lawn of Nice.
But if it was necessary to retain only one, it would undoubtedly be the Malian defender.
The garnets stopper was unplayable in the air for the Nice attackers with no less than 10 duels won.
With around 6.4 defensive clearances per game, he already had the top elite stats ahead of the game.
This Saturday, he exploded the counters by releasing 14 hot balloons.
To top it all off, he was involved in the only goal of the match since the Metz action started from its beautiful opening towards Centonze.
A warrior match for "Kiki" Kouyaté.
To discover
Ligue 1 fixtures and results
League 1 standings
LiveAiglons nailed to the ground by Metz
Fabien Centonze, generosity and efficiency
FC Metz only scored one shot in this part. It was the work of Fabien Centonze and hit the mark. In the first period, it was he who put the Grenats on the right track by perfectly shifting De Préville before continuing his action to be at the reception of the center of the former Lille. The former Clermont player did not shy away from his defensive spots, however, since he recovered 5 balls in all in the feet of the Nice attackers. With 8 duels won, he also proved to be very solid when the Messins were cornered in their area at the end of the second half. With 4 goals in Ligue 1, he is the club's top scorer this season and his current Olympic form will be essential in the quest to maintain FC Metz.
Nicolas De Préville, an activity at all times
The messin winger is now part of the furniture of our Ligue 1. But soon to be 31 years old, he has obviously not aged a bit and proved it this Saturday night. Very active on his lane, his duet with Fabien Centonze on the right wing worked perfectly just like the goal. Its center for the garnet side is millimeter and only asked to be decisive, which it was. The former Reims could even have been decisive several times, especially in the 56th minute. His devastating projection on the right wing allows him to break several opposing lines. His pass for Niane is perfectly in time but the Senegalese striker shoots Todibo. Globally De Préville proved to those who doubted thathe still had the level to evolve in the elite.
FLOPS
Andy Delort missed everything
Complicated evening for Andy Delort to put it mildly.
The former MHSC did almost nothing this Saturday on the lawn of the Allianz Riviera.
So yes, he is the author of the only two shots on target in the match for Nice, but nothing fundamentally dangerous for the Metz rearguard.
In the game, he was out of time especially on this action in the 39th minute.
While Amine Gouiri is alone in the box, the Algerian striker chooses the solitary raid and is stolen the ball.
And when he was selfless, he was not always technically fair since he only managed 57% of his passes.
Not to mention his 10 duels and his 16 lost balls.
Justin Kluivert, voluntary but ineffective
We can, of course, put the intensity deployed to the credit of Justin Kluivert on this meeting. But the Nice leaders certainly expect better efficiency from their player, recruited last summer. Of the 6 crosses he attempted in this match, 4 were missed, either pushed to the near post or sent ... to the 3rd post. He also lost a lot of balls (14) and his only attempt of the match flew in the stands of the Allianz Riviera. The offspring of Patrick Kluivert has an undeniable talent but he is still far from overshadowing his illustrious father.
Ibrahima Niane, when an attacker lacks confidence
This is the major disappointment on the Metz side. Last season the 22-year-old Senegalese started off with a bang with 6 goals in 10 games before contracting a serious injury. This year, he is struggling to find his best level and his evening performance only confirmed this observation. In the 56th minute, he harvested a good situation for garnets by shooting directly at Todibo while De Préville had done a magnificent job on the right wing. In the impact, he could not respond either since he lost 4 of the 6 duels he played. Ibrahima Niane seems to be the prime example of a confident attacker. Unfortunately for him, given the situation of his team in the standings,there is an urgent need to adjust the sights.