There is not necessarily fire on the Canebière.
Olympique de Marseille is still second in Ligue 1. Igor Tudor is still in charge of his group, which ensures that the instructions are applied and the intensity required.
Only this Sunday evening, a chance flew away.
Beating OGC Nice meant taking a three-point lead over Racing Club de Lens and strengthening their place as runners-up.
But winning against the Aiglons also had a deeper flavor: it was the perfect opportunity to blow on the embers of the Vélodrome before the first of the two clasicos in February which awaits the City.
Instead, OM lost a few feathers of confidence and serenity by losing 1-3 in their lair.
The current dynamic (seven wins and a draw since the post-World Cup resumption) has crumbled on a very good opponent.
The latter offers himself a second shot outside after having broken the Lensois lock at Bollaert on Wednesday evening (0-1).
Audacious and united with the ball, as if at a loss, they cleverly contained the Marseille attacks to better sting on the counterattack.
Their first two goals are strangely similar.
Strikes outside the area repelled by Pau Lopez and fiery recovery by Diop (38th) then Laborde (44th).
A first to forget for Vitinha
On the other side of the field, Peter Schmeichel and Jean-Clair Todibo embodied the newfound solidity of this group.
Neither Clauss (17th), nor Under (22nd), nor Malinovskyi (50th) were initially fair enough in the last gesture.
Same thing for a certain Vitinha.
From this gloomy evening, the most expensive rookie in the history of the club will not remember much.
Concerned with the pressing, however, he failed to showcase himself where expected.
His single strike ended its trajectory in the clouds.
It was just before the break… and his exit in place of Alexis Sanchez.
A frustrating first, like that of Dimitri Payet, also inside for one of his rare tenures.
Vitinha only had one scoring chance to get his teeth into.
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OM returned to the game thanks to an entrant, the Ukrainian Ruslan Malinovskyi (60th).
A well-deserved reduction in the score which offered a very pleasant end to the game.
But OGC Nice held on.
A resistance to which coach Didier Digard is no stranger.
Appointed in interim by Lucien Favre on January 9, the former midfielder had an idyllic start on the benches of L1.
He was even able to breathe at the very end of the match thanks to Billal Brahimi, author of a perfect cross shot (86th).
This success at the Vélodrome, the fourth in five games, allows the club to move up to eighth place.
The European places are still far away but the people of Nice are clearly establishing themselves as the sensation of this beginning of the year.
And this to the delight of PSG, which regains an eight-point lead over Marseille, before the direct confrontation in the round of 16 of the Coupe de France on Wednesday.