In the snatch, OGC Nice got their ticket to the Conference League this Thursday evening by dominating Maccabi Tel Aviv, in overtime (2-0).
How hard it was… Like poor Khéphren Thuram, crippled by cramps in overtime and thus forced to give way to Alexis Beka Beka who would eventually become the hero of the match, the Gym suffered a thousand evils to overcome of Maccabi Tel Aviv, this Thursday, in the final return play-off of the Conference League, the third in European competitions.
Beaten 1-0 in Israel a week earlier, the Aiglons went to seek their qualification on merit, by copiously dominating their opponents of the day but by playing bad luck for a long time. If Alexis Claude-Maurice, holder for the occasion, opened hostilities for the Niçois (1-0, 26e), the latter then constantly came up against the baraka of the impressive Daniel Peretz in the opposing goal.
Result: a scoreboard blocked until the end of regulation time, therefore an obligatory passage through the extension. With a bonus, at the 100e minute, the expulsion of Gouiri for a clumsy second sole… Moments later, Oscar Gloukh sounded the crossbar of Kasper Schlmeichel – a warning at no cost fortunately for one of the rare Israeli opportunities of the evening (106e). The liberation came in the wake of a splendid curling strike by Alexis Beka Beka, which came into play a few minutes earlier (2-0, 113e).
OH THE MAD GOAL. ALEXIS BEKA BEKA GIVE THE ADVANTAGE TO NICE, 10 AGAINST 11, AT THE 112th MINUTE. pic.twitter.com/9WXDmdNqz3
— RMC Sport (@RMCsport) August 25, 2022
Read also: Nice-Maccabi Tel Aviv, the film of the match
There will be six Ligue 1 clubs on the continental scene this season: PSG and OM in the Champions League; AS Monaco, FC Nantes and Stade Rennais in the Europa League; OGC Nice in the Conference League. Not insignificant in the race for UEFA points and while fifth place in the European hierarchy – currently occupied by France – will be worth three direct qualifications for the C1 from 2024.
